Two Dragon Trainers and a Night Fury
by AnimationNut
Summary: Sequel to Two Misfits and a Night Fury. Hiccup and Sunset are back with their dragon Toothless. Now that Berk has made peace with dragons, new adventures arise-as well as new challenges. But with their friends, family, Toothless and each other, Hiccup and Sunset are ready to face any problems thrown at them.
1. When Dragons Run Wild

**I do not own Dragons: Riders of Berk. Direct quotes from the series are bolded.**

**When Dragons Run Wild**

The wispy morning clouds hung over the island of Berk. A cool breeze brushed the island and its inhabitants every so often and the sun gently pierced through the cloud cover. It was perfect flying weather.

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III flew his Night Fury, Toothless, through the sky, enjoying the sensation of wind rushing through his long hair. His best friend, Sunset Hockerson, sat behind him, her arms wrapped securely around his waist. The redhead glanced at the view below with a smile. "You know, sometimes I still have difficulty believing that this is really happening."

"What, flying on a dragon?" Hiccup asked.

"Yeah, and the fact that we managed to change the way most Vikings view dragons." Sunset grinned. "It's a dream come true."

"You got that right," Hiccup agreed and patted Toothless' side. "I think that's enough stretching for now. What do you think, bud?"

Toothless cooed his agreement. They flew through the clouds and landed on a sea pillar, where their friends were waiting. "Alright, guys. It's best trick competition time. Who's gonna go first?" Hiccup asked.

Fishlegs Ingerman hesitated. "Um...well, I-"

"I'll go first," Snotlout Jorgenson interrupted.

Fishlegs frowned, annoyed. "Actually, I think-"

"I'll go first." Snotlout said firmly, casting the large boy a warning glare.

Astrid Hofferson sighed in exasperation. "Then just go already, will you?"

"You better believe I'll go. And when I do, Hookfang is gonna kick-"But before he could finish his gloating, his Monstrous Nightmare took off into the sky, causing Snotlout to hang on for dear life. His friends watched in amusement as Hookfang completely disregarded his rider's commands. The dragon flew low to the water, weaving through sea stacks that were much too close for Snotlout's comfort.

The boy let out a scream of panic when his helmet banged off the side of a sea stack. "Hookfang! Stop it!"

Hookfang snickered and dove into the water, finishing off his routine. After a few seconds he popped back up with Snotlout gasping for air. Satisfied with his performance, the dragon flew back to the pillar and settled down comfortably. Snotlout slowly relinquished his grip on his dragon's horns and felt his body. "Yes! I'm still alive!"

The other teens rolled their eyes. Fishlegs eagerly waved his arm in the air. "Can it be my turn?"

"Go right ahead," Hiccup encouraged.

Fishlegs carefully guided Meatlug off of the pillar and flew her a few feet away. Everyone watched with amusement as the boy flew his Gronkle in a slow circle around the pillar before landing. Beaming, Fishlegs pumped his fist in the air. "Woo-hoo! New record!"

"Okay, now it's my turn!" Ruffnut Thorston cheered.

Tuffnut punched his twin sister in the shoulder. "No way! It's my turn!"

Sunset shook her head. "How many times do we have to remind you guys? Same. Dragon."

"Oh, yeah." Ruffnut and Tuffnut immediately stopped fighting and took off into the air. But as they flew towards the sea stacks, they couldn't agree on which direction to turn. And since it took two riders to fly their Zippleback Barf and Belch, the disagreement caused them to smack into the side of a sea stack. Annoyed with their riders, the two dragon heads flipped the twins high into the air before swooping away.

Ruffnut and Tuffnut screamed as they plummeted for the water below. "Okay, this kinda cool and scary at the same time!" Tuffnut hollered.

Hiccup frowned in concern and was about to rescue the twins when the Zippleback snatched the twins up and tossed them back into position. The twins did not squabble as they flew back to the sea pillar. "That was a pretty close brush with death," Ruffnut panted, resting her head against Barf's.

"I enjoyed it." Tuffnut voiced.

Astrid rolled her eyes. "Alright, now it's _my _turn." She turned to Hiccup and Sunset and smirked. "You two might wanna take notes."

The blonde flew into the air with her Deadly Nadder, Stormfly. Everyone watched as Astrid and Stormfly worked in sync, perfectly executing a series of flips, turns and spirals. Snotlout scoffed when the girl landed next to him. "Yeah, that was cool. But let's see you do it without the dragon."

Astrid's response was a punch in the shoulder.

"Aw, that was nothing." Sunset grinned. "Just wait until you see what we can do."

Hiccup winked at Astrid and gave Toothless a nudge. The Night Fury immediately obeyed, flying towards the water and expanding his wings before they submerged. They quickly flew overtop the water, sweeping past sea stacks and cliffs before coming across an arched one, which interfered with their flight pattern.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Sunset asked.

"Yup," Hiccup confirmed. The two teens jumped off of Toothless and landed on top of the sea stack. They ran across the rough surface as Toothless flew under the arch. In perfect synchronization the kids jumped on Toothless' back as he came out on the other side.

"Victory," Sunset cheered and high-fived Hiccup.

"Time for the big finale," Hiccup grinned and patted Toothless on the head. "You know what to do."

Their performance was finished off by a series of fire blasts that lit up the sky beautifully.

"That was awesome!" Fishlegs exclaimed.

Astrid shook her with a smirk. "And they're still the best."

"We'll see you guys later!" Hiccup hollered as they flew past.

"Try not to faint in the aftermath of our awesomeness!" Sunset teased. Hiccup rolled his eyes with a grin and guided Toothless to the village.

"Er, Hiccup," Sunset said as they approached the Hooligan village. "Do you see what I see?"

Hiccup glanced down at the plaza nervously. "You mean absolute chaos?"

"Uh-huh."

Hiccup landed Toothless and dismounted, helping Sunset to the ground. "Take a rest, bud." Sunset stroked Toothless' muzzle and the duo set off through the plaza, watching the chaos happen around them.

Dragons of all sizes were stealing food from houses. Monstrous Nightmares were sitting on rooftops (much to the homeowner's displeasure) and Terrible Terrors scuttled underfoot. Sunset scratched her neck as she watched a dragon mess up a woman's clean laundry. "This isn't good."

"You're telling me," Hiccup sighed.

"HEADS UP!" Someone hollered and everyone immediately began running for cover. Confused, Sunset and Hiccup glanced up to see dozens of dragons flying overhead, unleashing their droppings. Yelping with disgust, the two raced over to Bucket and Mulch, who were guarding themselves with make-shift umbrellas.

"That's really gross," Sunset gagged.

"Hey Bucket and Mulch," Hiccup greeted. "I'm sorry about, uh...this."

"Happens every day at three," Bucket informed, mildly impressed. "They're regular, I'll give them that."

"It's better than the days of kill or get killed." Mulch said optimistically. "Oh, we have some cod for your father, Hiccup. Bucket, give the lad the cod."

Bucket bent down and picked a sack off of the ground. He frowned in confusion at the hole in the bottom of the bag. "Did I eat it already? Did I like it?"

"Er, actually, it was them." Sunset pointed to a couple of Terrible Terrors, who were dragging the cod behind a barrel.

"Sorry," Hiccup apologized again. "But thanks anyway."

"You're welcome." Bucket said cheerfully.

Making sure the coast was clear, the kids then headed off to Hiccup's house with Toothless trailing behind. "You know, it's a good thing most of the Vikings are willing to take the good with the bad." Sunset said.

"Most of them, anyway." Hiccup said bitterly. "You've forgotten Mildew."

"I tend to forget him on purpose." Sunset said idly.

The teens entered Hiccup's house and Toothless immediately curled up by the fire. Hiccup and Sunset climbed up to Hiccup's room. "So, what do you want to do?" Hiccup asked.

Sunset rocked back on her heels and glanced at Hiccup hopefully. "Well...there's a batch of pigs due to be slaughtered tomorrow morning..."

"Sun, you're the only one who can survive on eating fish, fruit and vegetables." Hiccup said in exasperation. "The rest of us need to eat meat."

Sunset gave her best pouty face. Hiccup gave in. "Oh, fine. We'll go free the pigs."

"Yay!"

...

As Hiccup and Sunset went to free the doomed farm animals, Stoick and Gobber were overseeing the storage of food for the winter. "Put most of it in the back," Stoick called. "The fishing boats are coming in with a huge catch!"

"Oh look," Gobber muttered, nudging Stoick in the side. "Here comes Mildew with his daily complaint."

Stoick sighed. "I'm afraid you picked a bad time, Mildew." He said firmly when the irritated man came up to him. "The freeze is coming soon and I'm in the middle of storing food."

Mildew completely ignored the brush-off. "Those dragons are not fit to live with civilized people!" He ranted.

Gobber smirked. "And neither are you. Your house is on the far side of the island for a reason, you know."

Mildew bristled. "Oh, sure, make your jokes while these dragons steal our cod and turn our houses into piles of rubble!"

Some of the other Vikings gathered around, agreeing completely with Mildew. "He's right!" Someone shouted.

Mildew nodded. "See, Stoick? It's not just me. Those beasts are wild and unpredictable."

"Yeah!"

The man pointed a finger at Bucket, who lingered at the front of the crowd. "They cracked this man's skull like an egg!"

Bucket blinked. "I like all kinds of eggs."

On a roll, Mildew whirled around and glared at Stoick. "Those dragons need to be locked up in cages!"

Stoick glanced at the crowd as they cheered in agreement. An uneasy feeling rose in his stomach. "Listen-"

"If you don't deal with them, they'll eat us out of house and home!" Mildew cried. The other Vikings hollered their support.

Sunset and Hiccup, who had returned from letting the pigs loose in the forest, stormed out of the crowd, fed up with what was being said. "It's not their fault!" Sunset insisted.

"They're just being dragons," Hiccup added in defense. "They don't mean any harm."

Stoick placed a restraining hand on their shoulders and pulled them back. "Look, if there's a problem, I'll deal with it.

Mildew glowered. "There is _definitely _a problem, Stoick." He turned around and started walking through the crowd. "And I think I speak for everyone when I say it had better be dealt with."

As he left the Vikings started to shout out at Stoick, complaining about their own dragon-related problems. Gobber urged the two kids off. "It's going to get ugly pretty soon," he warned. "And I suggest you two get Toothless out of here."

"Okay," Sunset agreed hesitantly. "See you later." She gently took Hiccup's arm and the two brought Toothless to Hiccup's house, suddenly worried that their new relationship with the dragons would crumble.

...

A heavy darkness fell over Berk and the evening found Stoick pacing up and down in front of the fire. Sunset and Hiccup sat with Toothless comfortably in the corner and Gobber leaned against the wall, idly carving a duck out of wood with his knife hand.

"I got it!" Stoick said suddenly. "We can put signs!"

Gobber arched an eyebrow. "You want to put up signs? For the dragons?"

Stoick scowled. "No! For the people!"

"That's even worse," Sunset giggled. "Most of us can't even read."

Stoick shot her a dry look. "Alright. How about we stretch a net all around the plaza?"

"Dragons have fire, Stoick." Gobber reminded his friend.

"I know that!" Stoick snapped. He groaned in frustration and flipped a chair over. "Maybe Mildew has a point."

Hiccup righted the chair Stoick had thrown and sat on it, resting his chin on the backrest. "Dad, wait, I have an idea. **What if I deal with the dragons?**"

Stoick eyed Hiccup uncertainly. "You want to deal with the dragons?"

"I'm the best person for the job!" Hiccup exclaimed.

Sunset walked over and threw an arm around Hiccup's shoulder. "Yeah, if anyone can control them, we can." She said confidently, indicating that there was no way Hiccup was doing this without her.

Stoick and Gobber regarded each other thoughtfully before Stoick finally nodded. "Alright, Hiccup. I'll give you and Sunset a chance to fix this problem. Starting tomorrow."

Gobber laughed. "Well then, I think it's time we ought to be heading home. Sunset's going to need a lot of rest to prepare herself for all the burns she'll get tomorrow."

Sunset wrinkled her nose. "Your lack of faith is disturbing." She gave Toothless a hug goodbye before following Gobber out the door.

Hiccup grinned and waved as the two left. "Bye, Gobber. Bye, Sun."

"Later, Hiccup." Sunset called.

"I think you should get all the rest you can, too." Stoick advised. "You have a big day tomorrow."

The boy nodded and went up to bed with Toothless following behind.

There was a lot of work to do tomorrow.

...

The following morning found Hiccup and Sunset in the middle of the plaza with Toothless flanking them. They scanned the chaos happening around them. "There's gonna be some changes around here," Hiccup said firmly.

"Where do we start?" Sunset asked.

"Get away from my bread!" A Viking woman hollered, attempting to shoo a Deadly Nadder away from her freshly baked loaf. She fled into her house and the Nadder attempted to go after her.

"Right there," Hiccup said.

"Hold on, ma'am!" Sunset called and gently urged the Nadder away from the door. Hiccup strode forwards and placed a hand on the Nadder's nose.

"Bad dragon," he said sternly. "We don't steal people's bread."

The Nadder relaxed, cooing softly. Hiccup smiled. "Yes!"

The victory was short lived, however, as a Gronkle crashed through the plaza, riling up the surrounding dragons. "Minor setback," Hiccup said, rubbing the back of his neck as he watched the Gronkle and the Nadder chase a flock of chickens.

"Er, Hiccup?" Sunset tugged on his arm and pointed. A Monstrous Nightmare and Deadly Nadder were fighting at the top of a grassy slope. Running down the slope was a herd of sheep, one of them on fire. Sunset gasped in panic and raced after the poor sheep. "Hold on, Woolworth! I'm coming!"

Overwhelmed, Hiccup decided that he was probably more suited to help the flaming sheep rather than breaking up a dragon brawl. "Toothless, break up that fight!" Hiccup ordered and Toothless immediately obeyed.

Hiccup ran to get a bucket of water. As he went, he was in the cross-fire of Vikings chasing after dragons. "Focus on the flaming sheep," he muttered to himself as he filled up a wooden bucket with water from the well. "Focus on the flaming sheep."

On the old watch towers, the Viking teens sat with their dragons as they watched Hiccup and Sunset fail to quell the chaos. "We really should help them," Astrid mused.

Snotlout snickered. "In a little bit."

Hiccup finally filled a bucket of water and grabbed it, racing after Sunset, who was having little success in catching the sheep. Woolworth (as named by Sunset) ran in Hiccup's direction. Hiccup prepared to throw the bucket of water, but Woolworth knocked him to the ground before he could do so, causing the boy to spill the water all over himself. Hiccup slid down the slope, exhausted. Sunset collapsed beside him, panting heavily.

"This is going well," she wheezed, climbing to her feet once more.

"Uh-huh," Hiccup said dazedly and allowed Sunset to help him to his feet. Together the two cornered Woolworth and Hiccup used a spare bucket of water to put out the flame. "Sorry," Sunset apologized, stroking his wool soothingly. Woolworth relaxed instantly.

Hiccup shook his head. "You truly are an animal whisperer."

"I just really like animals," Sunset shrugged and urged the sheep along his way. She glanced up and froze. "Uh...Hiccup?"

The two stared in horror as a herd of dragons flew overhead, their droppings raining down upon the plaza. With no time to take cover, Sunset cowered behind Hiccup and squeezed her eyes shut.

"Perfect," Hiccup groaned before bracing for impact.

"That's nasty!" Tuffnut laughed, holding his stomach.

Astrid looked at the two below with sympathy. They had given it their best shot.

Too bad it wasn't good enough.

...

After a dozen baths, Hiccup and Sunset rested at the Haddock household. The girl lay sprawled on the wooden floor, every bone in her body aching. Hiccup rubbed his neck and moaned. "I'm sore all over. Even here," he said, removing his prosthetic foot. "Is it possible for this thing to be sore?"

Sunset gave a grunt, not having the energy to answer in a full sentence. Toothless peered at his humans with an expression of pity and mild amusement.

"Hiccup, are you here?" Astrid's voice echoed from downstairs. Hiccup immediately got to his feet and smoothed out his shirt. Sunset did not bother to get up.

"Do I look okay?" Hiccup asked Toothless frantically.

Toothless glanced at Hiccup and growled, attempting to be supportive. Hiccup sighed. "Great. Dragon pity."

Astrid entered Hiccup's room and eyed the two teens with a worried expression. Hiccup smiled brightly. "Hey, Astrid! It's great to see you!"

"Uh-huh. How was your day?" Astrid asked cautiously.

"Oh, nothing much happened." Hiccup lied. "Sunset and I just hung around the plaza."

"Yeah, we saw you there." Astrid smiled sympathetically. She brushed some rubble off of Hiccup's vest. "I'm surprised you're not in the same position Sunset is."

Hiccup collapsed on his bed, allowing his exhaustion to show. "That flaming sheep is gonna haunt my dreams for the next month."

"**Hiccup!**" Stoick suddenly hollered from downstairs, catching the attention of the teens.

Not quite liking his father's tone of voice, Hiccup got to his feet as Stoick entered his room. "Why does the plaza look like a war zone?" He demanded.

Hiccup rubbed his neck. "It looks bad now-"

"Extremely bad," Astrid whispered.

"But it'll get better once my plan is complete." Hiccup finished hurriedly.

"So you do have a plan?" Stoick arched an eyebrow.

"Of course I do!" Hiccup lied. "It involves a lot of diagrams and its pretty complex. Right Sun?"

"Whatever." Sunset mumbled, half-heartedly playing along.

Stoick glanced at her and then at Hiccup. "She's fine," Hiccup said dismissively. "She's just resting so that she has lots of energy for the next phase of our plan tomorrow."

"Sure," Stoick said, not believing him in the least. "Whatever you do better work, Hiccup, because Mildew has got the whole island riled up. If you don't get those dragons under control, then their heads will be called for."

Stoick stomped down the stairs and Hiccup stroked Toothless' muzzle soothingly. "Your head is staying right where it should be."

"We promise," Sunset added.

"There are a million dragons out there and two of you," Astrid pointed out. "I hope you do have a plan."

"I do," Hiccup assured her. "Er, I mean, I _will_."

Astrid shook her head. "If you say so. Good luck, guys." She waved and departed, deciding that her friends could use as much spare time as possible to figure out a solution.

Hiccup dropped to his bed once more. "What are we going to do?"

"I don't know," Sunset said tiredly. "All I know is that I'm sleeping over. I can't feel my legs and that means it probably isn't a good idea to walk home."

Toothless curled up beside Sunset and closed his eyes. Sunset petted his head and sighed. "There was a class that taught us to kill dragons. Why can't there be a class that tells us how to train them?"

Hiccup's eyes widened. "That's it! We can convert the old arena into a training ring!"

"Will your dad allow that?"

"..."

"We're going to go behind his back, aren't we?" Sunset asked knowingly.

"You got it."

...

The next day, Hiccup and Sunset gathered the teens and their dragons into the training ring. Ruffnut glanced around dubiously. "Your plan is to train dragons?"

"**Where we used to kill them?**" Tuffnut added.

"Well, we don't do that anymore, so that's why this place is available." Hiccup pointed out.

"Hiccup, the dragons seem a little nervous," Astrid said as she patted Stormfly's muzzle soothingly.

"They're very sensitive, especially Meatlug." Fishlegs added, hugging his dragon close. "She lost a family member here."

"You know, it's really great your dad just gave us this place." Astrid said, stepping over to where Hiccup and Sunset were feeding Toothless baguettes.

"Er, yeah, it would have been nice if he had." Hiccup agreed.

"We're going behind your father's back?" Astrid asked incredulously.

"This surprises you?" Sunset asked dryly.

"Okay, enough talking about this!" Hiccup snapped. "We got work to do." He turned to face his friends. "We want dragons to live in our world without destroying it and to do that they're going to need our help."

"We can totally help them destroy the village," Tuffnut grinned.

Sunset rolled her eyes. "Not what he's trying to get at, guys."

"This is serious." Hiccup said firmly. "Mildew is going to do all he can to lock our dragons up. I'm not going to let that happen."

"Neither are we," Ruffnut piped up.

"First problem," Sunset took over, holding up a baguette, which Toothless instantly ate. "The dragons are eating everything they can get their claws on. To get them to drop what they shouldn't have-"She removed another baguette from the basket and held it out to Toothless, who took it once more. "-you just scratch them under the chin." She demonstrated and Toothless' mouth slackened in bliss. She removed the baguette, satisfied.

"That may be how you do things," Snotlout snorted, striding over and snatching the baguette from Sunset's hand. "But Hookfang and I have a different way of doing stuff." He chucked the baguette at his dragon, who snatched it out of the air, half of the bread poking out of his mouth. Snotlout walked confidently over to his dragon and snapped, "You drop that right now!"

Hookfang lowered his head and spit the bread out. And then he chomped down on Snotlout's head and torso, giving the boy a light shake.

"He dropped it, didn't he?" Snotlout's muffled voice asked from inside Hookfang's mouth.

Tuffnut smirked. "Should we give him a hand?"

Astrid grinned. "In a little bit."

"Okay, okay. Fun time over," Hiccup called. He handed everyone a baguette. "We have a lot of work to do but I know together we can train these dragons."

Everyone got to work, leaving Snotlout in his dragon's mouth. "Hello? Can someone do the chin-scratchy thingy? Please?"

Sunset sighed, feeling sorry for the boy. "Well, he did say please." She wandered over and gave Hookfang a scratch under the chin. Snotlout dropped to the ground, covered in saliva. Sunset smirked. "That's a good look for you."

"Oh, shut up."

...

After a full day of training, the next morning Hiccup and Sunset led the other teens through the plaza. "What do you know? No dragons." Fishlegs mused, peering around the strangely empty and quiet plaza.

"**That's weird**," Hiccup muttered. "Where are they?"

Just as the words left his mouth an explosion sounded from the other side of the village. The kids turned to stare as flames and smoke billowed behind some houses. "Found them," Sunset sighed.

The kids raced in the direction of the smoke. They were dismayed to find that the dragons were ransacking the storage house. Astrid stared in shock at the familiar Deadly Nadder that was eating fish from upturned fish barrels. "Is that you, Stormfly?"

Stormfly glanced up when she heard her name. Astrid groaned. "Oh, Stormfly!"

"Bad dragon, Hookfang!" Snotlout scolded his dragon, who was eating the fish with Stormfly.

Hiccup and Sunset hurried to see the extent of the damage of the storage house. The door was off of its hinges and crates and barrels littered the area. Stoick was inside, cleaning up the mess. Frustrated, he threw a broken beam aside with a roar of anger. Spotting Hiccup and Sunset, he marched outside. "Everything's gone!" He shouted. "They've left nothing for us for the freeze!"

"I told you, Stoick." Mildew chirped from the sidelines. "But you didn't listen. Now see what happens when you put a group of teenagers in charge?"

The teens glared at him.

"And now look at what the beasts have done!"

"We can fix this!" Hiccup said desperately.

"Enough, Hiccup. How can I expect you to control all the dragons when you can't control your own?" Stoick demanded.

Sunset and Hiccup peered past his shoulder to see Toothless eating up the scattered fish.

"Toothless," Sunset groaned.

Stoick gathered all the empty baskets and ordered Mulch and Bucket to man the boats for another catch. It did not matter to the village leader that it took six months to gather the last supply of fish. All that mattered was that they tried.

Hiccup and Sunset hurried after Stoick as he left the ruined storage house. Gobber lazily followed along. "Dad, I can do this!" Hiccup insisted. "Sunset and I know dragons better-"

"Hiccup, I have an entire village to feed." Stoick stressed. "They've gone too far this time! By tonight, I want them caged."

Hiccup and Sunset were about to argue when Mildew stormed up. "You have to do more than cage them!" He snapped. "You have to send them away!"

The surrounding Vikings shouted their agreement. Stoick raised a surrendering hand. "Alright, alright. They'll be caged tonight and tomorrow morning Hiccup and Sunset will send them off the island." He shot the two teens an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry," Stoick said sincerely before marching off. Gobber ruffled Sunset's hair before following his friend.

"Hiccup," Sunset whispered, rubbing Toothless' muzzle. "What are we going to do?"

"We'll think of something." Hiccup said, putting a hand on Toothless' head. "We have to."

Or else they would lose Toothless forever.

...

The teens couldn't eat dinner that night. All were miserable at the prospect of losing their dragons. "This sucks," Snotlout muttered, stabbing his dinner.

"It majorly sucks," Astrid agreed. "What am I going to do without Stormfly? I'm going to miss seeing her face every morning."

"And I'm going to miss Meatlug licking my feet as I sleep," Fishlegs said forlornly.

Astrid sighed heavily. "We better get this over with."

The teens got up dejectedly and walked out of the Great Hall. Sunset and Hiccup walked toward Toothless, who was napping by the central fire in the Hall. "We can we do?" Hiccup asked desperately. He bent down and rubbed Toothless soothingly. "We can't lose our best friend."

"Oh, how sad. A boy and a girl saying goodbye to their dragon." Mildew mocked as he stepped forward.

"No one's saying goodbye yet," Sunset said hotly. Sensing trouble, Toothless growled softly.

"Your problem is that you thought dragons could be trained." Mildew sneered. "**A dragon's gonna do what a dragon's gonna do.**"

Mildew cackled and walked away. Hiccup and Sunset watched after him stonily for a moment before the door reopened and two Vikings walked. The cool wind blew into the Hall and extinguished the central fire. Toothless quickly rekindled the flames.

"Oh, thank you." A Viking woman said gratefully as she took a seat near the warm fire.

Hiccup and Sunset stared at each other, wide-eyed.

"That's it!" They exclaimed.

"Come on, Toothless." Hiccup said hurriedly. "We've got something we need to do."

...

It was dark by the time Sunset and Hiccup flew to the arena, where they could see their friends closing the cage on their dragons. "Don't close the door!" Sunset hollered, landing Toothless in the ring. Hiccup jumped off and hurried over to the lever, opening the cage door once more.

"What's going on?" Astrid asked, surprised.

"We're not locking these dragons up," Hiccup said firmly.

"Your dad changed his mind?" Astrid asked, delighted. A sudden thought struck her and she frowned. "We're going behind his back again, aren't we?"

"Maybe," Hiccup said evasively. "Listen, the dragons are gonna do what dragons are gonna do. That's their nature." He gestured at the dragons filing out of the cage behind him. "What we need to do is learn how to use it!"

The kids glanced at each other, hopeful. "You know, that's so crazy it just might work!" Tuffnut exclaimed.

"Then let's start brainstorming!" Sunset cheered. "We have some dragons to save."

...

The morning sun shone in the sky. In the arena, the teens mounted their dragons, ready to do what they had planned the night before. "Alright guys, let's do this." Hiccup said determinedly and they all took flight.

Snotlout directed Hookfang towards Bucket and Mulch's fishing boat. The two Vikings yelped in panic upon seeing Hookfang, but they quickly realized that the Monstrous Nightmare was scaring fish into their nets. "Thanks a lot, dragon!" Mulch called as Snotlout and Hookfang emerged from the water, triumphant.

Hiccup, Astrid and Fishlegs flew towards Mildew's house, where the man was tilling his soil. "Hello, Mildew!" Astrid said cheerfully as Stormfly used her tail to overturn the soil, leaving behind deep grooves. Toothless followed behind, where Hiccup and Sunset upturned a bag of seeds into the grooves.

Mildew gaped, hardly believing what was occurring.

"Fertilizer time!" Sunset called.

Fishlegs led a herd of dragons over Mildew's garden, where the droppings landed right in the soil. "Don't be so sour, Mildew." Sunset chided.

"Yeah," Hiccup added. "That was three months of work we just saved you!"

In the fields, the twins used Barf and Belch to herd the boars and yaks. Hiccup and Sunset joined them moments later, helping their friends round the animals up in the barn. Gobber eyed the kids in amazement before closing the barn door.

The other teens soon joined them and they all gathered in front of the barn. "That was wicked!" Fishlegs exclaimed.

"How did you know this would work?" Astrid asked, amazed.

Sunset and Hiccup exchanged a glance. "Well, actually, it was Mildew who gave us the idea." Sunset grinned.

"We have to work with dragon nature instead of against it," Hiccup added.

"Look, Stoick! Those dragons are hardly in cages!"

Hiccup and Sunset glanced nervously at the blank expression on Stoick's face. "No, they aren't. Hiccup, Sunset, put those dragons where I ordered you to put them. The rest of you, get to the arena, _now_."

The teens scrambled to obey, climbing on their dragons and flying to the arena. "This is not good," Sunset muttered.

"I know we disobeyed an order, but we fixed the problem!" Hiccup exclaimed.

They arrived at the arena faster than they would have liked. With a heavy heart, Sunset and Hiccup locked the dragons into the cages and lined up in the middle of the arena with the rest of the teens.

"Why are people coming to watch?" Sunset hissed. "This should not be considered entertainment."

"Ssh!" Astrid hissed. "Here he comes!"

Stoick and Gobber entered the arena with serious expressions. "I'm too beautiful to go to jail," Ruffnut moaned.

Tuffnut snorted. "What liar told you that?"

"All of you disobeyed my orders," Stoick boomed. "And there will be consequences."

"I knew we were gonna get in trouble," Astrid grumbled, regretting going behind her leader's back. "You two never listen!"

Feeling guilty, as everything was their idea, Hiccup and Sunset stepped forward. "If anyone should be punished, it should be us." Hiccup said insistently.

"No, you were all a part of this." Stoick said sternly.

Brimming with anticipation, Mildew glowered down at the meddlesome teens from the stands.

"You took control of this place without my permission and you released the dragons against my orders. Things have to change around here. That's why-"

Unable to contain himself, Gobber interjected. "You're all getting a dragon training academy!"

Hiccup and Sunset gaped in shock. Astrid beamed with delight. The twins high-fived and Fishlegs and Snotlout fist-bumped.

"I wanted to tell them, Gobber!" Stoick said indigently.

"You can tell them the rest!"

"But you told most of it!" Stoick protested.

"I didn't tell them the part of how proud you are."

Stoick sighed in exasperation. "Yes, well-what he said, Hiccup. You've all made me very proud. I want you all to use this dragon training academy."

He walked over to the lever and opened the gate. Snotlout rushed forward, ecstatic. "Hookfang, buddy!"

His Monstrous Nightmare promptly picked him up by the back of his vest and carried him away. Hiccup and Sunset hugged Toothless happily. Mildew scowled and stormed out of the arena, furious.

"We did it, Hiccup." Sunset beamed.

"Like we always do," Hiccup confirmed.

Stoick walked forward and put a hand on Hiccup's shoulder. "Now all that's left is to train them."

"As long as I got her and him, I can do anything." Hiccup smiled, slinging his arms around Toothless and Sunset. Astrid coughed pointedly behind him, and Hiccup grinned. "And them too, of course."

The arena door suddenly burst open and a Viking raced in, looking flustered. "Stoick! I've searched for days, but I'm afraid I can't find the herd of pigs anywhere!"

Stoick blinked, stunned. "The pigs disappeared?"

"You don't think they knew they were going to get chopped a few days ago and escaped?" The farmer asked in concern.

Gobber closed his eyes, realization striking him. "The pigs didn't, but someone else did." He glared at his new charge, who beamed innocently back.

"_Sunset."_

**Yay! First chapter/episode up! **

**Review please, and no flames! :)**


	2. Job Hunting for Gobber

**I do not own Dragons: Riders of Berk. Direct quotes from the series are bolded.**

**Job Hunting for Gobber**

Hiccup and Sunset stood in front of a blackboard in their new dragon academy. Hiccup figured that the best way to train dragons was to make sure that they knew as much as they could about them. With Sunset's idea of a trivia game, the afternoon found the teens locked in an intense battle (which Astrid and Fishlegs were winning).

"Okay, guys. **Which dragon makes the best welding torch?**" Hiccup asked.

Astrid waved her hand in the air. "A Deadly Nadder, obviously!"

"The magnesium flame it has burns with the heat of the sun!" Fishlegs added.

Hiccup grinned and Sunset added another tally to their margin. Astrid and Fishlegs bumped fists triumphantly. "The score is one hundred to ten," Sunset updated.

Astrid snickered, glancing at their opponents. "The sad part is you _started _with ten."

Tuffnut scowled. "The game's not over yet! Wait, hold up, what team am I on?"

Hiccup ignored the male twin and read off another question. "**What is the shot limit of a Hideous Zippleback?**"

"Can you even count that high?" Astrid goaded.

Ruffnut grinned wickedly. "How about we find out? Barf! Belch!"

The twins' Zippleback rose up from its resting spot from behind their owners. Six rapid fireballs were shot at the wall behind Astrid's head. Tuffnut laughed. "Three! The answer is three!"

Ruffnut high-fived her brother and smirked. "I knew we could count that high!"

"Actually, it's six." Sunset grinned. "But hey, you're half right, so I'll give you five points."

"That takes us up to thirty, right?" Snotlout asked.

Astrid got to her feet with a deadly smile. "Okay, now it's my turn to show you what happens when shoot fire at the owner of a Deadly Nadder." She whistled sharply and Stormfly jumped up, shooting tail spikes at the other team, pinning all three against the wall.

Snotlout scowled and jumped to the ground. "Answer me this; what happens when I sic a Monstrous Nightmare on your butts?"

"Training time over," Hiccup said quickly before a fight could ensue. "Great job, everyone!"

"Get ready to face some Monstrous Nightmare!" Snotlout shouted, jumping onto his dragon and patting the side of his head. Hookfang immediately flared up, causing Snotlout to yelp in pain and race over to the trough of water the dragons usually drank from. He submerged himself, sighing happily. "Oh, that feels good."

Hiccup furrowed his brow and walked over to his cousin. "He never does that when you're riding him. Is he alright?"

Astrid smirked. "Maybe he finally clued in as to who was riding him."

Snotlout gave her a flirty smile. "Hey, there's room in here for two."

Annoyed, the blonde shoved Snotlout into the water. Hiccup grinned slightly and filed out of the arena with Sunset and Toothless trailing behind. "That was...interesting." Sunset voiced.

"It went better than I expected," Hiccup admitted.

"Next time it should be us against all of them." Sunset laughed. "They wouldn't stand a chance."

The two kids entered the plaza, where they came upon a crowd of people gathered around someone they couldn't make out. Curious, Hiccup and Sunset made their way to the front of the crowd. There they saw Gobber with a wooden cart full of old weapons.

"You people may think that these old dragon killing weapons have no more use, but think again!" Gobber exclaimed. "This sword would make the perfect jelly knife."

He attempted to demonstrate and ended up turning the bread into crumbs. Sunset rubbed her forehead. "He's not being serious, is he?" She asked in disbelief.

Hiccup sighed. "We both know that he's being _very _serious."

"And this sword also makes perfect breadcrumbs!" Gobber quickly tried to cover up the slight mishap, but it worsened when the plate shattered. The crowd politely ignored this but gazed at Gobber with skepticism.

"A dark day when a grand dragon slayer is pawning his weapons," Mildew whispered as he came up behind the duo. Hiccup and Sunset kept their gaze ahead, attempting to ignore the man.

"This mace also makes a...good flyswatter!" Gobber spotted a fly buzzing around his show-table and he lashed out at it with the mace. The weapon destroyed the table, but the fly flew safely away. "Okay, maybe not so much." Gobber tossed the mace aside and dragged over his catapult. "For the ladies who are home alone when the husband's out pillaging, Big Bertha is just what you need to protect yourself!"

Everyone ducked as the catapult launched, shooting a rock through the nearest house. The homeowner gaped at the new hole in the middle of his wall and stared in disbelief at the crowd who stared back. The Vikings shook their heads and started to disperse.

"There's a lot more to see!" Gobber called, but it was no use. With a sigh he patted Bertha lightly. "Don't worry, old girl, I'll find you a nice home."

"The poor man has had his entire life taken away." Mildew whispered. "And it's all because you two wanted to make friends with dragons. The guilt must be eating away at you!"

Hiccup swallowed thickly and stared sadly at Gobber. Sunset glared at Mildew's retreating back before placing a hand on Hiccup's arm. "I'm going to go cheer him up. I'll see you later, okay?"

"Yeah, that's a great idea. See you tomorrow, Sun."

Sunset hurried off to help her caretaker pack his things away and Hiccup headed home. The redheaded girl gingerly picked up an axe and placed it in the wooden cart, catching Gobber's attention. "Ah, there you are. Haven't tried freeing the pigs again, have you?"

"You know, not eating meat isn't a terrible thing." Sunset said as she carefully arranged the swords in the cart.

Gobber snorted. "Look at you, you're skin and bones. You need some meat on you."

Sunset grinned slyly. "But I'm afraid I'll end up like you."

Gobber shoved Sunset's helmet over her emerald eyes. "Hilarious. Maybe I'll stop feeding you completely, then."

"Alright, alright. I'm sorry." Sunset grinned and adjusted her Viking helmet. "So, where are we supposed to put Bertha?"

"_You _can put her behind the house." Gobber slapped her back with a smirk.

"What?! By myself?" Sunset exclaimed.

"Next time, think twice before making a crack about my weight." Gobber chuckled and rolled his weapon cart into the forge, leaving a disgruntled Sunset staring blankly at the massive catapult.

...

Hiccup stared at his bedroom floor, upset. Toothless sat beside him, watching the boy patiently. Finally, the boy began to speak. "Gobber made this for me," he said, pointing to his prosthetic leg. "And he actually made the tailfin you're wearing right now. He even taught me everything I needed to know in order to make the original designs for your previous tailfins. Gobber means a lot to me and I hate seeing him like this. I have to help."

Toothless cooed his encouragement, nudging Hiccup's arm.

They both glanced in the direction of the stairs when they heard Stoick enter the main room, groaning tiredly. Hiccup went downstairs to see Stoick collapsed in a wooden chair, rubbing his forehead. "Rough day?" Hiccup asked.

"I was running all over the island today," Stoick sighed. "At dawn I married the Svenson girl and that Odegard boy. Then I went down to the fields because some kids were turning over yaks-and I think I have an idea on who those kids were."

Hiccup smiled slightly, grabbing a mug and filling it with mead. "Yeah, Ruffnut and Tuffnut do enjoy a good yak tip."

Stoick snorted. "Then I had to make my way back to the newlyweds to settle a domestic dispute." He accepted the drink Hiccup offered. "Thank you. You know, sometimes I wish there were two of me."

Hiccup froze in the process of dropping a log into the fire. "But Dad, there are two of you!"

Stoick scowled and slammed the mug down. "That better not be another crack about my weight."

"No, no, I was talking about Gobber." Hiccup said excitedly. "He can help you!"

"But he's busy making weapons for dragon killing-"Stoick began before realizing that Gobber had no need to do such a thing. "Which is something we don't do anymore because of you and that's great...but not for Gobber."

"And that's exactly why he needs to help you." Hiccup said. "Gobber needs a job to do."

Stoick mulled this over. "That's not a bad idea. I could use a right hand man to help me with the daily jobs of chiefing."

"That's perfect, because Gobber only has his right hand." Hiccup grinned.

...

Sunset jogged over to Hiccup's house the following morning, intent on having a word with her best friend. She yanked open the front door and found him sitting at the table, sketching idly in his notebook. Toothless bounded to his feet upon seeing his girl and happily greeted her. Sunset smiled and nuzzled his nose lovingly. "Hey there, buddy. How are you?"

Toothless barked contently. Sunset took a seat across from Hiccup and Toothless immediately curled up by her feet.

"Maybe we could alternate taking care of Toothless," Hiccup suggested, closing his notebook. "I don't think it's fair if I get to hog Toothless all to myself."

"Trust me, I'd be knocking you over the head if that was what was happening." Sunset teased and rubbed Toothless' head. "I'd love it if Toothless could sleep over, but I don't think staying for a long period of time is a good idea considering Gobber tends to harbour dangerous weapons. And speaking of Gobber, I want to have a word with you."

Hiccup frowned in concern. "Is everything okay?" He thought Sunset had been adjusting pretty well to her father's abandonment of her. Then again, Gobber had really been fonder of the girl than Moonlight had ever been.

"Everything's fine, except for the fact Gobber is now Stoick's right hand man thanks to _your _suggestion." Sunset snapped. "Hiccup, what _are _you thinking?"

"Dad thought it was a good idea!" Hiccup protested.

"I think he'll change his mind by tonight," Sunset said flatly. "Hiccup, I love Gobber, but doing what Stoick does takes tact and sensitivity. Gobber has neither of those."

"I think you're being a little too negative." Hiccup crossed his arms. "I think Gobber will do a great job."

"And I think you're being a little too positive." Sunset leaned back in her chair and propped her feet up on the table. "I swear, by tonight, Stoick will be here, telling us everything that Gobber did, and all of it will not be good."

"And I swear Dad will be praising me for my genius." Hiccup retorted.

Toothless growled softly in warning, making sure to prevent a real fight from occurring.

"Alright then. I will not move from this spot until your dad comes home." Sunset vowed. "I want to be here when you realize I'm right."

"And I won't move either, so I can see your face when you realize _I'm _right."

A moment of silence followed.

"...wanna see who can hang from the rafters the longest?"

"Bring it on, Sun."

...

Evening fell upon the village and Stoick burst into his home later than usual, his head pounding. Sunset and Hiccup immediately got up from the table and the village leader dropped into Hiccup's vacated spot. "Two blocks of ice please."

Hiccup hurried to obey. Sunset grabbed a mug and filled it with mead. She handed it to Stoick and he took a large gulp. "Thank you, Sunset."

"You're welcome." The girl glanced up when Hiccup stumbled into the house, fumbling with two blocks of ice. She helped him with the load and they gave the desired items to Stoick, who pressed them against his head.

"It couldn't have been that bad," Hiccup began.

"It was more than bad!" Stoick ranted. "Do you know what Gobber did today? He named a baby girl Magnus, told Bucket and Mulch to settle a bartering dispute with violence and made a ship out of _iron_."

Sunset gave Hiccup a pointed look. He glared back and turned to his father. "I think you're being a little rough on him. It was his first day after all. I'm sure tomorrow will be way better."

"Oh, it will be, because it won't involve Gobber." Stoick said firmly.

Hiccup gaped. "You let him go?! I can't believe it! He needs our help!"

"Oh, no. _I _don't have to do anything. You and Sunset, however, will be busy finding a new job for Gobber."

Hiccup stared in disbelief. Sunset rubbed her forehead. "Any other bright ideas?" She asked sarcastically.

"Shut up."

"Hiccup, it's rude to tell a woman to shut up. Apologize." Stoick ordered.

Hiccup felt like tearing his hair out. "I'm sorry, Sunset. I'm very sorry."

Sunset patted his shoulder. "It's all good. We can figure out something tomorrow during dragon training."

Hiccup perked up. "Sun! That's it!"

Sunset and Stoick exchanged confused glances. "What's it?"

"We'll bring Gobber to dragon training!"

"Oh, Thor help us all."

...

The next morning, Sunset and Hiccup explained the situation to their friends. None of them seemed too happy with the idea. "Gobber's coming here?" Fishlegs asked in disbelief.

"It's gonna be great," Hiccup said, mostly to assure himself than the others. "Gobber's spent a lifetime studying dragons. We'll all be better dragon trainers if we can tap into that."

The gates to the arena burst open and Gobber entered, rolling his weapon cart behind him. "Anyone miss me?"

"Gobber, why did you bring your weapons with you?" Sunset asked in exasperation.

"Well, I thought by threatening to kill them, that's how we'd train them. That's the way my daddy taught me how to swim, you know." Gobber pulled a mace from the cart and slammed it enthusiastically to the ground. "School is in session!"

Frightened, the dragons charged past Gobber and flew out of the arena. After a moment of shocked silence, the teens burst out of the arena in an attempt to chase down their dragons. Gobber blinked before shrugging. "I didn't really like school either."

"Well, uh, thank you, for that how-to-scare-your-dragon tactic." Hiccup drawled. "That's all for today."

"Really? I like this job." Gobber walked cheerfully out of the arena, dragging his cart behind him.

Sunset collapsed beside Toothless. "I can't believe that just happened."

Hiccup stared at the spot in the sky where the dragons disappeared. "They're gonna come back right?"

"If I were them, I wouldn't." Sunset muttered, pushing her helmet over her eyes. "I'm taking a nap. The stress is killing me."

Hiccup rolled his eyes and sat beside his friend, allowing her to rest while he doodled in his notebook.

His friends and their dragons wouldn't be gone long...hopefully.

...

Roughly four hours had passed since the dragons had made their escape. Just as Hiccup was about to give up and head home, his friends flew through the gates, tired and irritated. "Yeah, sorry about that." Sunset apologized, getting to her feet and walking over to the teens with Hiccup behind her.

Hiccup tilted his head to the side as he watched his friends arch their backs, moaning. "What's wrong?"

"We've been flying our dragons for four hours straight to get them to calm down," Astrid sighed. "And this is _after _we chased them for about, I don't know, _forever_."

"I don't think it's going to work having Gobber here," Sunset voiced. "His methods are a little...too violent."

"What are we going to do with him, then?" Hiccup asked. Sunset shrugged, not having an answer.

_Whump. Whump. Whump._

The teens turned to see Ruffnut kicking Tuffnut's butt repeatedly. "Fighting isn't the answer," Sunset lectured.

"It's cool, I asked her to do this. I need to get some feeling in my butt." Tuffnut groaned. Ruffnut landed one more kick, which Tuffnut felt. He jerked in pain and gingerly rubbed his behind.

"Time to return the favour," Ruffnut snapped, turning around and bending over.

"Huh. Sunset and I have flown on Toothless for hours without going numb." Hiccup remarked.

Astrid rolled her eyes. "Yeah, well, not all of us can have saddles, you know."

Hiccup grinned broadly. "That's it! Come on, Sun."

"Here we go," Sunset muttered. She and Toothless chased after Hiccup, leaving behind a confused group of dragon riders.

...

The kids and their dragon raced to Gobber's forge. "Gobber!" Hiccup called, peering into the shop. "I have a job for you."

"Oh really?" Gobber asked, amused. He glanced up from his sword polishing and eyed his former apprentice. "And what might that be?"

"I need you to make some saddles for the other dragons," Hiccup explained, holding his papers full of diagrams and ideas.

"Hey, that's a great idea!" Gobber exclaimed. He snatched the papers from Hiccup's hands and flicked through them, unimpressed. "But these aren't. I can do much better."

Hiccup quickly gathered his papers from the floor where Gobber had tossed them. "It's great that you're excited, but I think there are some things from my design that you could use. You were the one who taught me everything I know."

"And that's exactly why you should let me do what I do best." Gobber responded, grabbing a hammer and getting to work. "**I've been making saddles since you were in diapers. **And I made your diapers too."

Hiccup flushed. "Just remember that every dragon is different and that you need to adjust-"

"**Hiccup.**"

"I really think you should-"Sunset began.

"Sunset.

"But-"

"**Hicc. Up. **Sun. Set. I taught Hiccup everything he knows, but not everything I know." Gobber stated firmly, not open to any objections.

Sunset and Hiccup exchanged glances before shrugging and walking out of the forge, leaving Gobber to do what Gobber does.

...

"Hiccup!"

The boy grumbled and rolled over, eyes fluttering open. He let out a soft yelp of surprise when he spotted Sunset leaning over him. Toothless jolted at the sound and let a menacing growl. He quickly stopped when he realized it was just his girl. He cooed in greeting and Sunset rubbed him on the head.

"What are you doing?" Hiccup hissed, climbing out of bed. "If Dad heard you sneaking through the house, you never would have made it to my bedroom!"

"Good thing Stoick is a heavy sleeper," Sunset remarked. "Come on, you gotta see this!"

"Sun, I don't care if a another sheep is giving birth-"

"Not _that. _It's Gobber!"

Hiccup immediately grabbed his vest and yanked it on. "What's wrong? Is he okay? Did he lose another hand?"

"He's fine, but...he's _singing._"

Hiccup stared at his friend in surprise. "Seriously?"

Sunset nodded.

"This I gotta see."

"Why do you think I woke you up?" Sunset grinned and the trio left the house, jogging over to Gobber's forge. They stood a few yards away, listening intently.

"_**I've got my axe and I got my mace, and I love my wife with the ugly face! I'm a Viking through and through!**_" Gobber sang as he worked, his voice strangely soothing in the dark night.

Hiccup smiled. "He only sings that song when he's happy."

"I think we finally did it, Hiccup." Sunset grinned.

Toothless growled in agreement, watching the man his kids were so fond of contently.

...

Gobber worked all through the night so that the saddles would be ready by the next morning. Hiccup and Sunset stood beside the heavy blanket that hid the new accessories from view. "Okay guys, this is it." Hiccup announced. "Gob-"

"_I _have made many a saddle in my day," Gobber interrupted, pushing Hiccup aside. The boy allowed the man to make his own speech, a slight smile on his face. "And now I can proudly say I've made a dragon one! These saddles are like my children." He gave the blanket a loving pat. "Children that you strap to a flaming reptile and fly on. Ta-da!"

Gobber yanked the blanket off of his creations, revealing several unique saddles. The teens gasped in awe. Hiccup and Sunset, on the other hand, were less than pleased.

"This is the complete opposite of what I was expecting." Hiccup said flatly.

"Of course it is!" Gobber said cheerfully. "No one knows what it's like to live up here." He gave his head a solid rap.

Sunset peered at the saddle closest to her and gaped. "Gobber! Is that a flamethrower?"

"It is!" Gobber confirmed. He demonstrated the flamethrower and grinned. "I bet you didn't see that one coming."

Hiccup rubbed his forehead. "Considering that dragons come with a built-in one, no I didn't."

"You can never have too much firepower." Gobber said.

Hiccup and Sunset turned to the twins to see what their saddle was like. Much to their dismay, they found the twins loading small rocks into their built-in catapults. Ruffnut and Tuffnut launched their projectiles only to have the rocks strike the heads of Barf and Belch.

"Bad idea," Hiccup muttered.

"You should not be able to make something like a _saddle _violent!" Sunset moaned. Hiccup patted her shoulder comfortingly.

"We forget, this is Gobber."

Gobber glanced at Fishlegs, who was having difficulty getting Meatlug off of the ground due to their heavy mace-laden saddle. "There is no way that saddle is heavier than Fishlegs."

"I'm _husky_," Fishlegs said indigently.

Snotlout, however, couldn't get his saddle on Hookfang at all. The dragon kept snapping and shooting fire whenever he came too close with the accessory. "Hookfang, what's your deal?" Snotlout asked in exasperation.

He attempted to pet him, but Hookfang pulled away with a snarl. "Alright, someone's trading with me."

Tuffnut snorted. "Oh yeah, I'm so gonna give away my perfect dragon for an angry one."

Astrid was the lucky one. Stormfly did not object to her saddle and it was comfortable. After a test run, Astrid landed her dragon back in the arena. "This one's pretty good."

"Give the horn a try," Gobber encouraged.

Against her better judgement, Astrid blew into the built-in horn. A foghorn-like blast echoed through the ring, startling Stormfly and causing her to shoot spikes in a random direction. Unfortunately for Snotlout, it was in _his _direction.

"First time wasn't cool," he snapped as he got pinned to the wall. "And the second time _definitely _isn't cool."

"Okay," Hiccup said loudly. "I think a few-"

"Changes need to be made?" Gobber finished. "Way ahead of you! I got so many ideas this thing can't keep up." He gave his helmet another tap.

Hiccup and Sunset stared at each other helplessly.

What were they going to do?

...

"There have been many horrible days in my life," Sunset remarked as she cleaned up what was left of Gobber's saddles. "But I think today takes the cake."

"I've had worse," Hiccup sighed as he swept the floor of the arena. When he got to the spot where Toothless was resting, he snapped his fingers and motioned for his dragon to move. Toothless obeyed, occupying a different section of the floor.

The orangey-red glow of the setting sun cast a warm light on the ring as the kids cleaned. But neither of them was feeling the warmth on the inside.

Stoick entered the arena and stared around in surprise. "Thor almighty! This place looks worse than when we were killing dragons in here."

"We got Gobbered." Sunset explained, gingerly tossing a broken axe head into the 'garbage' pile.

"That's Gobber for you. He always means well, but doesn't always do well." Stoick agreed. "What are you going to do about him?"

"Clean up his messes and fix his work," Hiccup and Sunset answered in unison.

Stoick frowned with disapproval. "Listen, Gobber's like family-"

Hiccup tossed his broom to the ground in frustration and turned to his father. "And that's why I can't say anything to him!"

"No, that's _why _you have to say something to him. It's not fair to you or Gobber or Sunset if you don't."

Hiccup scowled. "How come _you _didn't say anything? All you did was pass him off to me!"

"I'm a chief. A chief delegates." Stoick said matter-of-factly. At Hiccup's disbelieving look, he pressed on. "Hiccup, I gave you and Sunset this academy because I knew it was the best thing for Berk. Now you have to do what's best for the academy." He placed a hand on Hiccup's shoulder and guided him towards the exit. "And what's best is hardly what's easy. Come along, Sunset. That's enough for today."

Sunset gladly dropped what she was doing and ran over to the departing duo. Toothless yawned and followed behind. The group walked past Snotlout, who was still pinned to the wall, sleeping. "What about Snotlout?"

"He's aiming for a new record." Hiccup said idly.

"Ah. I see."

"You know who I think is qualified to talk to Gobber?" Hiccup asked aloud as they walked down the slope leading to the village. "Sunset."

Sunset shook her head frantically. "I live with the guy! I don't want to be the cause of his broken heart and hear about it every day."

"It'll be a softer blow coming from you!"

"No it won't!"

"Yes it will!"

"_No it won't!"_

"_Yes it will!"_

"ENOUGH!" Stoick boomed. "You're _both _going to tell him, and that's an order."

"Yes Dad," Hiccup mumbled.

"Yes sir," Sunset sighed.

The village leader gave the kids a nudge in the direction of Gobber's forge. With heavy hearts the teens shuffled over to the man, with Toothless following behind loyally. "Maybe Gobber decided to use your ideas for the saddle," Sunset said hopefully.

"It's a possibility." Hiccup agreed.

A loud _bang _erupted from Gobber's shop, a grey cloud smoke enveloping the teens. "Okay, probably not." Hiccup groaned.

Sunset and Hiccup entered the forge and found Gobber at his workbench. "Hey, Gobber."

Startled, the man whirled around and aimed a cross-bow in their direction. Sunset yelped and Hiccup threw his hands over his head. "I come in peace!"

"Make a little noise next time!" Gobber snapped, lowering his weapon.

"Sorry," Hiccup apologized. "Listen, Gobber, about the saddles-"

"Ah, yes. I think the catapults were a bit much for the dragons, so I've gotten rid of the two big ones."

Sunset and Hiccup grinned with relief. "That's perfect."

"And I've replaced them with six tiny ones!" Gobber showed the teens a miniature catapult with a proud smile.

Hiccup and Sunset sighed. It was hopeless. "Listen, Gobber..."Hiccup said carefully. "I think it's time for you to take a break."

"Hiccup, Vikings don't take breaks." Gobber pointed out, going back to work.

"Okay, break is the wrong word." He looked at Sunset helplessly.

The girl swallowed nervously. "What Hiccup is trying to say is that we're not sure things are working out."

Gobber blinked, caught off guard for only a second before shrugging and continuing to pound away at a nail. "Alrighty. Get back to me when you're sure."

"I'm sure." Hiccup said firmly. "Gobber, I have to take you off the saddle project."

The hammering stopped. Gobber turned around, attempting to mask his hurt. "So...you're getting rid of me?"

"Only the saddles," Sunset said quickly, feeling awful. "We'll find something else for you to do."

Gobber snorted, facing away from the teens. "I've lost an arm and a leg, so I think I can survive losing a job. I don't need pity."

Hiccup desperately tried to think of something that would make Gobber feel better, but couldn't think of anything. "I'm sorry, Gobber." Hiccup said, patting his back comfortingly.

"See you back home," Sunset whispered and the kids left the forge and entered the dark night.

"Worst thing ever," Sunset said flatly.

"I really don't know what could be worse than that," Hiccup agreed.

A cacophony of screams came from the plaza. Hiccup squinted and could see fire blasts being fired in all directions, sending Vikings running in the opposite direction. "Well, actually, that could be worse."

Snotlout came tearing from behind a house, Hookfang following close behind. The enraged Monstrous Nightmare roared, spitting lava in the process. Spotting the dragon trainers, Snotlout hurried over to them. "Okay, I never thought I'd say this, but HELP!" Snotlout cried, shaking Hiccup frantically.

Hookfang jumped onto a roof, breathing massive streams of fire and rubbing the side of his face against the rough roof. Vikings flew from their houses to get somewhere safe. Hookfang snarled and jumped back into the middle of the plaza with a mighty roar.

"EVERYONE OUT OF THE PLAZA!" Stoick boomed, striding onto the scene. "This dragon is out of control!"

"I don't know what's going on," Snotlout said desperately. "I was rubbing his head, like he normally loves, but instead he went crazy! Hookfang hates me!"

Stoick ventured deeper into the plaza with Hiccup, Sunset and Snotlout following. The other dragon riders had gathered a distance away, observing Hookfang, who had calmed down somewhat.

"You know, they say after a while the pet will take on characteristics of its owner." Fishlegs spoke up. "That's probably what's happening here."

Snotlout frowned and half-heartedly punched Fishlegs in the stomach, proving the large boy's point.

Hiccup and Sunset stepped closer to Hookfang. "Do you remember the last time he ate?" Hiccup questioned.

"It's been days." Snotlout answered, concerned.

Sunset snagged a piece of fish from a nearby barrel and tossed it to Hiccup."It's okay," Hiccup said softly, holding the fish out. "You're probably hungry." He tossed the fish into Hookfang's eager mouth. But after a few chews, the dragon cried out in pain and spit the food out. Hiccup winced when the chunk of fish landed in Stoick's beard. "Sorry!"

Not impressed, Stoick removed the fish and tossed it over his shoulder, where Toothless gladly ate it. "This dragon needs to be brought under control."

"We got this," Sunset assured him. She approached Hookfang carefully and placed a hand on his nose. "Everything's going to be okay, boy." She said soothingly, patting him lightly on the jaw.

Hookfang went wild, rearing up and lighting on fire, lava spewing from his mouth.

"Sunset, run!" Astrid shouted. Toothless bolted past her and landed in front of Sunset, preventing Hookfang from harming her. Sunset and Hiccup raced over to the other Vikings, watching in concern as Toothless fought with the enraged Monstrous Nightmare.

Hiccup watched anxiously as Toothless and Hookfang circled each other, growling. Hookfang shot a fire blast, but it missed Toothless and lit the house behind the Night Fury on fire. "Toothless, stop!" Hiccup ordered, not wanting any harm to come to either dragon or any more houses.

"This is it," Stoick said firmly, placing a hand on Hiccup's shoulder. "Your way isn't working. I'm sorry." He then raced off-in the direction of Gobber's forge.

Hiccup watched him go in dismay. "He's not gonna do what I think he's gonna do, is he?"

"I'm afraid so," Sunset said. "Hiccup, we have to do something!"

"I know! But I don't know what's wrong with him." Hiccup frowned and watched as Hookfang crawled about the plaza, growling madly. "Does anyone have any ideas?"

Snotlout glanced over his shoulder and froze in terror. "Hiccup, why is your dad coming back with Gobber?"

Gobber stood in front of the teens, heavily armed. "Everyone get back. I'm here to do what I do best."

"He's gonna kill Hookfang!" Snotlout cried, distraught.

"He's not," Hiccup said, although he didn't quite believe himself.

Tuffnut snorted. "Yeah, because you totally bring stuff like that to _help _a dragon."

"Dad, Hookfang is Snotlout's dragon," Hiccup said desperately, approaching his father.

"He's a really good dragon," Sunset added, growing sick by the very idea of seeing Hookfang slain in the plaza.

"He's a _really _good dragon," Snotlout agreed, eyes welling up with tears.

"There's just something wrong with him," Hiccup said, hoping to persuade his father to give Hookfang a chance.

"There is most definitely something wrong with him." Snotlout sobbed.

"Hookfang is just having a bad day and we can't get rid of him for that!" Hiccup cried, seeing that his father wasn't being moved.

"One bad day equals disaster for us," Stoick said firmly. "I'm not willing to take that risk." He gave Snotlout an apologetic look before turning to Gobber. "Go ahead."

Gobber pushed through the crowd, determined. He used a couple of bolas to tie Hookfang's legs and wings together. Frightened and in pain, Hookfang attempted to breathe fire, but none came out. Gobber advanced, sword drawn. "You're all out."

"_No!" _Sunset shrieked, racing forwards and latching onto Gobber's arm. "I refuse to let this happen!"

Hiccup hurried over and helped Sunset keep Gobber's sword arm down. "Me too," he said firmly.

"There's no other choice," Gobber snapped, trying to shake the stubborn kids off.

Hookfang lit up with fire and burned through the bonds. He let out a mighty roar right in their faces. Gobber, Hiccup and Sunset stared into Hookfang's open mouth with shock. "Do you see what I see?" Gobber asked.

Hiccup and Sunset nodded, letting go of Gobber and retreating. "Alright, dragon, it's time to put you out of your misery."

Astrid gaped when Hiccup and Sunset did nothing to stop him. "What are you doing?!"

Hiccup did not respond. He and Sunset watched intently as Gobber lunged onto Hookfang's snout. The dragon snorted and tried shaking him off, but it was no use. Gobber managed to latch onto his jaw when Hookfang roared furiously. After a few seconds of frantic shaking, Hookfang managed to toss Gobber off. The Monstrous Nightmare slowly scratched his jaw before purring happily.

Snotlout beamed. "You didn't kill my dragon!"

Gobber held up a large dragon tooth, which had a cavity in it. "Kill a dragon for a toothache? What kind of lunatic do you take me for?" He winked at the relieved boy.

Hookfang waddled over and nuzzled Snotlout in the stomach. Snotlout laughed and hugged his dragon before remembering where he was. "Stop, stop." He got to his feet and coughed awkwardly. "Don't know where that came from."

Everyone rolled their eyes with a smirk before dispersing. Hiccup and Sunset approached Gobber. "I can't believe we didn't think of a bad tooth," Sunset slapped her forehead.

"That's because you're not me," Gobber said cheerfully. "Well, time to put the old girls away."

Hiccup rubbed his chin in thought before brightening. "Hold on, Gobber! I have an idea."

...

The following day, Hiccup and Sunset sat on a slope overlooking Gobber's shop. A line of dragons and their riders stretched far into the village, all waiting for Gobber to check out their dragon's teeth. "You know," Hiccup spoke. "The good men find a way to change with the world. Gobber is one of those good men."

Sunset smiled fondly. "Actually, he's one of the best."

"_**I've got my axe and I've got my mace, and I love my wife with the ugly face! I'm a Viking through and throoooough!"**_


	3. Farm Animals and Dragons Don't Mix

**I do not own Dragons: Riders of Berk. Direct quotes from the series are bolded.**

**Farm Animals and Dragons Don't Mix**

"Alright, Bucket." Mulch said as he and his partner walked towards the grazing fields. "Ready for another day with the animals?"

"Uh-oh, I don't think the animals are too happy," Bucket remarked pointing to the enclosed grazing grounds. A Deadly Nadder and a Monstrous Nightmare were fighting too close to the sheep, causing them to stand stock-still, too frightened to move.

"Oh, Thor's underpants!" Mulch exclaimed. He and Bucket hurried into the enclosure and shooed the dragons away. "Come on now, you know you're not supposed to be in here."

The dragons obeyed, flying out of the pen while growling at each other. Mulch sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Pesky little beasts. At least no sheep were set on fire this time." He grabbed a wooden bucket and squatted beside a yak. "Time to earn your keep."

Bucket headed over to the chicken coop and picked up a chicken, eyeing the empty nest with confusion. "Is it chickens or yaks that lay eggs?"

Mulch groaned in exasperation. "Didn't we just go over this?"

"I've forgotten." Bucket said, peering underneath Mulch's yak to see if it laid any eggs.

"Pay close attention," Mulch ordered, standing. He pointed at the flock of sheep in the corner of the field. "**Wool**." He then pointed at the yak in front of him. "**Milk.**" Finally, he pointed at the chicken coop. "**Eggs.**"

Bucket blinked, obviously confused. Mulch sighed in annoyance. "Alright. Watch." He crouched down beside the yak and grabbed the udder. "Grab and pull, Bucket. Grab and pull." Mulch demonstrated, but nothing came out. "Grab and pull."

Still nothing.

"Grab and _pull_!"

Nada.

Fed up, the yak kicked Mulch away. The man got to his feet and frowned. "Empty, eh? That's not good."

"What now?" Bucket questioned.

Mulch rubbed his chin in thought. "We should tell the chief, and then see if we can find Sunset. The girl has a way with animals. I wonder where she is."

...

The morning sun glinted off of the snow on Raven Point Mountain. Careening down the side, 'dragon-board' style, were Sunset and Hiccup. They held on to Toothless as they sped down the slope, kicking up snow behind them. "Woo-hoo!" Sunset cheered. "This is awesome!"

"Next time we should bring the rest of the gang," Hiccup said. "That way, we can have a race!"

"Which we would win, obviously. Nothing beats a Night Fury." Sunset rubbed Toothless' side affectionately.

They sped past chunks of rock and twisted pine trees, the wind rushing through their hair. Sunset smirked slightly and sent Toothless into a sharp turn, startling Hiccup and nearly causing him to topple off of Toothless. "Hey!" He exclaimed.

Sunset grinned. "My bad."

"Okay, this is the last time I let you drive," Hiccup threatened, but he had a smile on his face.

Sunset rolled her emerald eyes and glanced back at the mountain terrain in front of her. "Snow bank dead ahead!"

Toothless fired off a plasma bolt, exploding the snow bank and sending puffs of snow crashing over his riders. The Night Fury snickered. "Very funny, Toothless." Hiccup said dryly. A low rumbling caught his attention and he glanced over his shoulder. His eyes widened upon seeing a large cloud of snow rolling rapidly towards them. "Okay Sun, I think it's time to go!"

Sunset peered over her shoulder. "Geez! I think you're right." She attempted to adjust the tailfin, but found that the pedal was stuck. "Uh...Hiccup?"

Hiccup twisted his body so that he could get a good look at the tail. He swallowed. "It's frozen."

"Oh. Lovely." Sunset tightened her grip on Toothless as they rocketed over the edge of a slope. They landed back in snow, gathering speed. Sunset squinted and gasped. "Uh, there's kinda a trench coming up."

"On it," Hiccup grunted as he climbed onto Toothless' tail. He attempted to break off the icy coating, but it was no use.

"How's it coming?" Sunset asked frantically as the trench loomed closer.

"Prepare yourself," Hiccup said grimly, crawling back onto the saddle and wrapping his arms around Sunset's waist.

The teens screamed in panic as they plummeted into the trench, the avalanche following close behind. Hiccup's teeth jarred as he landed, the world now black. He shivered violently. "S-Sunset?"

"Here," Sunset croaked, trembling. "What happened?"

"I don't know." Hiccup frowned. "Toothless, buddy? Are you-?"

A small blue light lit up the dark area for a second before shooting up into the snow that encased them. Hiccup and Sunset hugged each other for warmth and they watched as Toothless melted the ice and snow around them before making a hole in the top of the snow for them to escape through. A small beam of sunlight shone down on the teens, thawing them out.

Hiccup noticed that Toothless' wings were spread out, forcing the snow to fall around them the way it did. "I was wondering why we weren't buried alive."

"He protected us," Sunset whispered. "As if by instinct."

Toothless cooed softly and nudged his humans to ensure that they were alright. Hiccup scratched his muzzle fondly. "We're fine, bud. Thank you."

The teens carefully climbed up through the hole Toothless had made, collapsing in the fluffy snow outside. "That was frightening," Sunset remarked.

"Never doing that again," Hiccup agreed. They climbed onto Toothless and flew back to Berk, eager to share what they had just experienced.

They landed in the middle of the plaza where they spotted Astrid, Snotlout and Fishlegs hanging about. "Guys!" Hiccup exclaimed. "You'll never believe what just happened!"

"What?" Astrid asked curiously.

Before Hiccup could begin the story, Stoick and Gobber came around the corner. "There you are, Sunset!" Gobber exclaimed. "We've been looking everywhere for you!"

"You haven't been freeing any more animals, have you?" Stoick asked suspiciously.

"No!" Sunset said quickly. "I swear."

"Alright, then. Come with us, please." Stoick motioned for the girl to follow. Sunset cast a confused glance at Hiccup before shrugging and hurrying after the two men.

"See you later, Hiccup!" Sunset called. She kept stride with her caretaker and chief. "What's up?"

"Bucket and Mulch have just told us that the animals aren't giving any provisions," Stoick explained. "They suggested that you have a look at the animals to see what's wrong."

"I hope it's nothing serious," Sunset said worriedly.

"I think I have an idea on what's happening." Gobber said thoughtfully.

"Well, maybe your idea will be confirmed by Sunset," Stoick said jokingly.

"Oh, so you're not going to listen to me until you have a confirmation from a fourteen-year old?"

"A fourteen-year old who knows what she's doing," Sunset said confidently.

Stoick burst into laughter and Gobber rapped on the girl's helmet. "Alright, smarty pants. Go do your animal whispering thing and tell us what's wrong."

Sunset jumped the wooden fence and jogged across the field. She crouched in front of a yak and rubbed its fur soothingly. "Hello, Cliff. What's troubling you?"

To the men's utter shock, the yak brayed, as if he understood exactly what Sunset was saying. The girl continued to pet the yak and gave the udder a gentle yank. No milk came out. She could feel the animal trembling beneath her touch. "You're scared, aren't you?"

The yak nudged against Sunset's palm. Sunset thought for a moment of what would scare Cliff so badly that he wouldn't give milk before realizing the problem. "Ah. I see."

"See? See what?" Stoick asked.

"I just want to make sure the others are having the same problem," Sunset walked over to the chicken coop and picked up a chicken. "Hello, Featherton. Are you scared too?"

Featherton clucked anxiously. Sunset nodded in apparent understanding. "You too, huh?" She placed the chicken back in her home before going over to the sheep.

"She's not _really _talking to them, is she?" Stoick asked in disbelief.

Gobber snorted. "She named every single animal in this field and in the barn. It doesn't surprise me if she has a personal connection to every one of these creatures."

"Hello, Woolworth." Sunset greeted, petting the small sheep on the head. "I bet you're frightened too."

"_Baaaa."_

"Yes, if I caught on fire, I would be traumatized too." Sunset agreed. "But don't worry. Everything will be just fine."

Woolworth licked her hand. Sunset got to her feet and walked back over to her amused caretaker and baffled leader. "The animals are frightened by the dragons," she explained. "So frightened, in fact, they can't give milk or eggs. It wasn't so bad when the dragons popped up once in a while, but now that they're here all the time the farm animals are spooked."

A Monstrous Nightmare suddenly flew over the fields, startling the animals. The sheep and yaks immediately raced over to Sunset, who wasted no time in comforting them. "Poor babies," she cooed. "It's hard to adjust to our new friends, isn't it?"

A loud groan of pain directed Stoick and Gobber's attention towards Bucket and Mulch, who had been observing from the sidelines. "Oh dear. Is your bucket tightening up again?" Mulch asked, watching as his friend gripped his metal bucket helmet in agony.

"No, no. I'm fiiiiine!" Bucket cried, dropping to the ground in pain.

Mulch knelt down beside him. "When his bucket gets tight it means a storm is coming," he explained to Stoick and Gobber.

"There's no storm! I'm fine!" Bucket said in a strained voice.

No one was fooled.

"Now, Bucket." Mulch scolded.

"I don't want a storm!" Bucket whined. "If lightning hits me helmet I might end up less intelligent!" He let out another cry of pain.

Mulch gave a gentle tug on the bucket. "That's on real good. A big storm must be coming."

"Storms never hit this early in the season," Stoick protested, glancing at the clear skies.

"And weather-predicting buckets aren't too reliable," Gobber added.

"I'd like to remind you that this bucket predicted the blizzard of Olaf," Mulch pointed out, hoisting Bucket to his feet.

"We spent a week digging Mildew out." Bucket recalled.

Mulch snorted. "And we have the rest of our lives to wonder why we bothered. **Trust the bucket, Stoick.**"

"Not until I get a second opinion." Stoick said firmly. He glanced at Sunset, who was surrounded by anxious farm animals that wanted to be close to the girl. Deciding that Sunset might be able to comfort the animals enough to calm them down, the two men left her to do her animal thing.

"I don't know how she does it." Stoick mused as he and Gobber began the long trek to Gothi's house, which rested on wooden stilts high above the village. "Did you see the way those animals ran to her?"

"They trust her," Gobber shrugged. "Why do you think she's the only teen we put on farm duty even when there are other farming Vikings to do the job? The yaks kick off anyone else who tries to take milk but they sit still for Sunset. The boars attack anyone who comes near except for Sunset. She just has a way with all beasts-from dragons to kitchen mice."

Stoick mulled this over as they began the long climb to Gothi's abode. Finally, after what seemed like forever, they reached the main platform where the village elder's house rested. "We've come for your council, Gothi." Stoick said, slightly out of breath. "Is there going to be a storm soon?"

Gothi emptied out a pouch of sand onto the wooden platform and began sketching with her staff. Stoick peered over Gobber's shoulder. "What's she writing?"

Gobber squinted at the words in the sand. "She's saying...'what do you think?'" Confused, the two men glanced at each other.

Gothi rolled her eyes and gestured to her house, which the two men now saw had bordered up windows and piled sandbags. "Did the chicken feet tell you? The goose feet?"

Gothi shook her head and wrote in the sand once more. Gobber grinned sheepishly. "**She says she could hear Bucket screaming from way up here.**"

"Well." Stoick cleared his throat. "This is kind of embarrassing."

...

Hiccup had just finished telling his friends what had happened on Raven Point when Sunset stumbled onto the watch tower, panting slightly. Hiccup frowned in concern. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," Sunset collapsed into the seat beside Astrid and stretched. "I just ran all the way from the grazing fields, is all."

Astrid frowned. "You didn't free the pigs again, did you?"

"A girl does it one time and no one lets her forget it." Sunset grumbled.

"Ever since you've been old enough to walk, you've freed three herds of pigs, two herds of boars, one group of horses, a flock of geese and a herd of cow." Hiccup listed, counting the activities off on his hand. "It really shouldn't surprise you when someone gets suspicious after you say you've come from the grazing fields."

"Oh, shut up." Sunset rolled her eyes. "It was your father who brought me down to the grazing fields, actually."

"Really? Why?" Hiccup asked curiously.

Before Sunset could answer, Ruffnut and Tuffnut approached the base of the old watch tower. "Hey, Hiccup! Your father wants to see you and Sunset!" Tuffnut called.

"He seemed pretty ticked off," Ruffnut added.

"He's looked ticked off since the day I was born." Hiccup shrugged as he and Sunset climbed onto Toothless. "But I doubt there's any connection."

They flew through the skies, heading for Hiccup's house. "So why did Dad need you?" Hiccup asked.

"He wanted me to find out why the animals weren't giving provisions. Turns out they're too spooked by the dragons to give any milk or eggs." Sunset explained.

"And this is a problem." Hiccup groaned. They landed in Hiccup's front yard and dismounted. The trio entered the house to see Stoick pacing up and down in front of a cooking cauldron, brow furrowed in concern. Hiccup shut the door behind Toothless and went to stand beside Gobber. "Dad, don't worry about the animals. Sunset and I-"

"Don't worry!" Stoick bellowed. "How can I not worry when a bad storm is coming and we don't have any provisions? After the storm hits it could be months before we can go fishing or hunting."

"But it's the middle of winter!" Hiccup protested. "Devastating Winter doesn't come for another month!"

"According to Gothi and Bucket, Devastating Winter is coming early." Stoick said flatly.

A knock on the door sounded and a second later Bucket and Mulch entered. "Nothing," Mulch said sadly as he held out an empty milk bucket. "And this is after pulling on a poor yak for three hours!"

Stoick stared at the empty bucket in shock before glaring at Hiccup. The boy put a hand on Toothless' head protectively. "The dragons don't mean to scare the animals," he defended. "And the dragons eat fish, not the farm animals!"

"But they're still massive, fire-breathing beasts that used to kidnap them to feed to their queen." Sunset reminded Hiccup. "And they're everywhere now that we made peace with them."

"And this is where you and Sunset promise to fix this," Stoick said pointedly. "Hiccup, you can control dragons. Sunset can comfort any animal of any size. Use those gifts to fix this problem."

"When does the storm hit?" Hiccup asked.

"A week," Mulch answered.

Hiccup smiled, relieved. "Perfect! That's enough time for us to-"

Bucket let out a moan of pain. Mulch interpreted the moan and corrected himself. "Make that three days and six hours."

"That's not so much time." Hiccup sighed, rubbing his head.

"Then I guess we're getting started at dawn tomorrow," Sunset said determinedly, ready to whatever she had to in order to help the animals. "Time to spread the message to the troops."

Hiccup watched as Sunset raced from his house to find their friends. "I wish I had that much faith," he muttered.

...

The following dawn found the dragon riders and their dragons in the ring with all the farm animals. Hiccup had managed to find two other dragons (which just happened to be the feuding dragons the animals were most afraid of) and coaxed them into the ring.

"Come on," Hiccup grunted as he and Astrid attempted to push a yak towards the new pair of dragons. "It'll be fine!"

"Sunset!" Astrid snapped, giving up and putting her hands on her hips. "Get this yak to move!"

"You're doing fine," Sunset insisted. "Just try to be a little gentler."

"Sun, please work your magic." Hiccup pleaded. "It will go much faster if you do."

Sunset shook her head and walked over to the frightened yak. The bovine relaxed instantly when she sensed the familiar presence of her human friend. "I know the dragons look scary, but they're really just big, scaly reptiles." Sunset cooed softly.

Tuffnut snickered. "Hey, just like Snotlout."

Annoyed, Snotlout grabbed the front of Tuffnut's vest and prepared to punch him. He hesitated suddenly. "You're Tuffnut, right?" He asked, not wanting to hit the girl, even if she deserved it.

"Nope," Tuffnut said in a high squeaky voice.

The Deadly Nadder and the Monstrous Nightmare started snapping at each other, frightening the yak off. Sunset sighed and went to calm her down as Astrid hurried over to stop the squabbling dragons. "You stop that right now," she said sternly. The two dragons lowered their heads, chastised. Astrid softened and patted their muzzles. "Good dragons."

"What if we looked at this from an animal's point of view?" Fishlegs suggested. He got to his hands and knees and crawled around before stopping in front of the Nightmare. "Why, hello there. I'm just a little sheep walking about. Baa!"

The sheep glanced at Fishlegs, unamused.

The Nightmare frowned at Fishlegs and roared loudly. Startled, Fishlegs scrambled underneath Meatlug for safety. "I think I agree with the sheep on this one," he said feebly.

"I've discovered that once you have a positive experience with something you're frightened off it's not so scary anymore." Hiccup said. He motioned for Sunset to herd some sheep over and she did.

"They don't even question her," Astrid said in awe as Sunset easily coaxed three sheep over to the dragons.

"Animals like her," Hiccup shrugged. "Now we just have to show the sheep that dragons are friendly and won't hurt them."

The Monstrous Nightmare sniffed the sheep curiously. The wool tickled its nostrils and the dragon sneezed, accidently lighting one on fire. The sheep scattered and Sunset quickly raced after the flaming sheep. "Poor Woolworth," she said sympathetically, patting out the flame and hugging the sheep close. Woolworth nuzzled against the girl and _baa'd _in fear.

"Okay, if we keep progressing at this rate we'll never get any milk or eggs." Hiccup said in frustration.

"Then we got to keep working on it." Astrid said firmly.

Suddenly, the Nadder and Nightmare emitted ferocious roars before flying from the ring, knocking the gates open. Ruffnut and Tuffnut ran to shut the gate before any animals could flee, but they needn't have worried. The animals were so spooked by the noise they were running blindly in all directions. Hiccup desperately tried to calm them down, but it was no use.

Sunset gave Woolworth one more comforting pat before going to stand beside Hiccup. She let a sharp, commanding whistle and the animals immediately stopped, peering at their friend with wide eyes. "I love you," Hiccup sighed with relief and turned to face his friends. "Another way to overcome fear is to show that the thing you're afraid of is also scared of something."

The twins and Snotlout eyed Hiccup dubiously.

"Do you remember Magnus the Merciless?" Astrid questioned. "He was a pretty scary dude. I was scared of him until I learned that Magnus was scared of the dark."

Tuffnut smirked. "So, during the day, merciless."

Ruffnut grinned slyly. "**And during the night...Tuffnut**."

Irritated, Tuffnut punched his sister in the shoulder. "It's a serious problem!" He defended.

"The point is knowing that Magnus was afraid of something made him less scary to me." Astrid explained.

"Exactly!" Hiccup removed two eels and stepped up to Stormfly and Hookfang. The two dragons immediately flinched, growling in fear. A pair of yaks that were the closest eyed each other thoughtfully.

Astrid beamed. "It's working," she whispered excitedly.

Hiccup turned to smile at her and accidently let go of one eel. It slithered towards the dragons and, panicked, Hookfang swung around and his tail struck a sheep, sending it flying into the wall. "Fuzzy!" Sunset exclaimed, running to assist. "You poor dear."

Hiccup buried his face in his hands and moaned. Astrid placed a comforting hand on his back. "Hey, don't worry."

"I'm not worried," Hiccup said quickly, snapping his head up. "What makes you think I'm worried?"

Astrid watched Hiccup twitch and jerk for a moment before ushering him from the ring. "I think it's time we stopped for the day. Sun?"

"I got the animals," Sunset assured the blonde.

As the teens stepped outside, Hiccup noticed the rapidly darkening sky.

Time was running out.

...

The day of the storm was probably the worst day of animal training (as Tuffnut had dubbed the last three days). Animals raced around the ring and the Deadly Nadder and Monstrous Nightmare (whom Hiccup had managed to track down and bring back) were snapping at each other. Astrid raced over to the fighting dragons while Hiccup raced about, trying to snag a couple of chickens. Sunset was too busy trying to calm the rampaging yaks down to help her best friend.

"You knock it off!" Astrid scolded, urging the Monstrous Nightmare and the Deadly Nadder into the corner. "Get back!"

Hiccup walked over with two chickens under his arm. "From this experience I've learned that chickens are nothing but chicken."

"What if we showed them that they have something in common with dragons?" Fishlegs suggested. Astrid and Hiccup glanced at him curiously. "Chickens and dragons lay eggs," Fishlegs elaborated. He grabbed an egg that was laid by a Terrible Terror last week. He set it on the ground and the two chickens immediately jumped from Hiccup's arms to inspect it.

Hiccup smiled when one chicken jumped onto the egg and settled on it. "See? An egg is an egg, isn't it ladies?"

A second later the dragon egg exploded, sending the chickens running for Sunset, who already had her hands full. "Hiccup!" Sunset cried in exasperation.

"Don't blame me!" Hiccup snapped. "Blame Fishlegs!"

"Hey! I forgot dragon eggs explode!" Fishlegs protested. "And so did you!"

"I know, I know. I'm sorry." Hiccup rubbed his forehead.

Gobber and Mulch entered the ring to see the animals pressed against Sunset, who could not move. "Alright, everyone move! The storm has arrived!"

Hiccup glanced up to see a steady dust of snow fall from the dark sky. "But we haven't made any progress!"

Gobber ignored the boy and pulled Sunset from the cluster of animals. The animals whined at having their source of comfort taken away from them. "Sorry, guys and gals." Sunset apologized. "But we gotta move. Out! Out!"

The animals obeyed, filing out of the ring. "Sunset and I need to stay and work with the animals some more!" Hiccup protested.

"Stoick wants everyone in the Great Hall now," Gobber said firmly. "And it won't do us any good if the animals freeze. We need to put them in the barn."

They all walked into the swirling snow to see that the barn was frozen shut. "Well, so much for that." Gobber sighed.

"Where else are we going to put them?" Mulch asked.

"There's only place left to put them." Hiccup said. "The Great Hall."

"Because it's such a good idea to have animals and dragons under the same roof." Mulch muttered, reluctantly urging the herd towards their destination. The teens made sure the animals stayed as far away from the dragons as possible.

A bolt of lightning struck a tree, startling the Deadly Nadder. Spikes shot out from its tail and nailed the Monstrous Nightmare in the face, causing it to roar in pain and flame up. Frightened, the sheep, yaks and chickens raced off in the opposite direction.

Snotlout spotted the yaks running towards him and he braced himself, ready to stop them. The yaks paid no heed to the boy and trampled him in their mad dash. "Okay...that hurt." Snotlout whimpered.

None of the teens had any luck in corralling the animals, not even Sunset. The animals were too hysterical to listen to anyone. Frantic, Sunset ran for Toothless with Hiccup not far behind. Gobber frowned. "And just what do you think you're doing?"

"Getting those animals back," Sunset said firmly. She mounted Toothless with Hiccup sitting behind her.

"Oh no you're not!" Gobber snapped. "You'll never get them rounded up in this storm."

"With Toothless we can," Hiccup said confidently. "We'll starve to death if we don't."

"I refuse to let you-"

"Sorry," Hiccup said, not willing to listen. Sunset gave Toothless a nudge and they flew off in the direction where the animals disappeared.

Gobber watched them go with worry. "Astrid, talk some sense-"He paused when he noticed Astrid mounting Stormfly and flying after the duo. "Ah, not you too! You can't-"Gobber quickly realized he was losing the battle when the rest of the teens got on their dragons and flew off. "COME BACK HERE, ALL OF YOU!"

But his order fell on deaf ears.

...

The teens flew through the forest, the snow making it difficult to see anything. Toothless fired off a plasma bolt, illuminating the area around them. "Find as many animals as you can," Sunset instructed. "We'll herd them back to the Great Hall."

"Is it too late to swing by my house?" Fishlegs called, shivering. "I want my heavy coat!"

"I can't feel my face!" Tuffnut hollered, slapping himself to prove his point. Ruffnut punched her brother in the mouth to see if she would get any reaction and was disappointed when she didn't.

Sunset spotted the clusters of farm animals against the snow. "Down there!" She hollered. "Let's go!"

They swooped down, beginning to herd the cold and frightened animals together. "I got yaks to the right!" Fishlegs called.

"I got chickens to the left!" Snotlout hollered. He crashed into Fishlegs, sending the boy spinning away. "Watch it! I'm trying to fly here!" Snotlout snapped. He guided Hookfang to the scrambling chickens below. "This way! Over here! Come on, chickens!"

Hookfang narrowed his eyes upon seeing a tree in their path, which Snotlout failed to notice. At the last second the Monstrous Nightmare veered, avoiding a collision.

Fishlegs had regained control of Meatlug and was now herding the sheep through the snow. "This way sheep! Baa! Baa!"

The sheep followed Fishlegs' directions. They ran underneath and fallen tree and Fishlegs attempted to follow-only to have Meatlug get wedged between the rough bark and cold ground. Fishlegs groaned.

"Got them!" Astrid called, picking up where Fishlegs had (unwillingly) left off. Stormfly flew just above the sheep. Astrid waited a moment before shouting, "Go!"

Stormfly unleashed a flurry of spikes, effectively caging the sheep. "Yes!"

The victory did not last long as Hookfang flew over the make-shift pen, knocking half the spikes down with his tail. "Sooooooooooooooorry!" Snotlout hollered as he desperately tried to get Hookfang under control.

"What are you doing?" Astrid demanded.

"Trying to fly a dragon who doesn't listen!" Snotlout snapped as he sped past.

Astrid glanced around and spotted three sheep running off. Sunset and Hiccup streaked by on Toothless. "Guys! Sheep!" The blonde pointed.

"Thanks," Sunset called and went to get them.

The sheep ran on a snowy ledge. Just as the smallest sheep was about to turn the corner, it lost its grip and fell off the edge. The sheep brayed in fear as it slid down the icy slope before plummeting to its death.

Toothless soared past and caught the petrified sheep. The Night Fury glanced down with a friendly smile. The sheep _baa'd _cautiously back.

"Great job, Toothless." Sunset said, relieved.

Toothless dropped the baby sheep beside its parents, who looked up at him gratefully.

"The storm is getting worse!" Astrid hollered, flying a few feet away. "I can't see a thing!"

"Alright, Toothless, give us a little light." Sunset whispered.

Toothless obeyed, shooting a plasma blast. Hiccup squinted and spotted two large shapes in the distance. "Yaks dead ahead!"

"We're on it!" Tuffnut called. The twins flew in the direction of the yaks and picked them up in one clean swoop. "Yaks are rescued!" Tuffnut said cheerfully.

"Put me down this instant!"

Surprised, the twins looked down to see that they had actually picked up Stoick and Gobber. They quickly complied, dropping the men into the snow below. "Are you crazy?" Gobber demanded, getting to his feet and brushing the snow off.

Sunset landed Toothless in front of them. Sadly, the two dismounted and walked over. "None of you should be out here," Stoick said sternly.

Hiccup swallowed hard. "I'm so sorry, Dad. I let you down." He said shakily.

Sunset rubbed the tears from her eyes. "I'm sorry too," she whispered. _And I'm especially sorry to you poor animals. I'm so sorry..._

"None of this is your fault." Stoick said firmly, putting a hand on their shoulders. "I'm taking you all back."

"Which way do we go?" Gobber asked.

"We'll follow our tracks."

Stoick pointed in the direction they had come from but all that could be seen was a heavy blanket of snow. The storm raged around them, making it difficult to see anything at all. The other dismounted their dragons and joined the others, shivering violently. "Now what?" Fishlegs asked fearfully.

Stoick glanced around and was worried to see all the kids trembling, their lips turning blue. The cold was having a deeper effect on them than him and Gobber. They would freeze to death.

Stoick refused to let that happen.

"Come together," he ordered. They all huddled together, arms wrapped tightly around each other for warmth. Sunset could not stop her tears from falling, as the animals meant a lot more to her than anyone else. Gobber noticed her distress and ran a hand through her red hair soothingly.

Toothless glanced up from his position in the snow and sensed that something was wrong. He called to the other dragons, who got up from the ground and waddled over to their friends. Everyone glanced up in surprise as the dragons formed a barrier around them with their wings, preventing the snow from battering them. "What in Thor's name are they doing?" Stoick asked in amazement.

Hiccup beamed. "**They're protecting us. It's their natural instinct.**"

Each dragon took a turn breathing fire into the middle of the circle, bringing warmth and light. Toothless glanced behind him, curious as to where the animals were, and spotted the parent sheep huddling around their baby. Toothless bounded over and the parents scuttled away in panic, but the baby stayed behind, cowering into the snow. Toothless cooed softly, urging the baby sheep to safety. The baby sheep wandered cautiously into the middle of the circle before making a happy noise.

The noise attracted the attention of the other animals. Toothless resumed his protective position behind Hiccup and watched happily as all of the farm animals made their over to the Vikings, crowding in. A pair of yaks cuddled against the twins and the chickens and sheep cuddled in the middle of the circle. The baby sheep curled against Toothless.

The animals were no longer afraid of the dragons.

"**Your dragons are really something, son.**" Stoick praised, clapping Hiccup on the shoulder. Hiccup beamed.

"They sure are."

Delighted, Sunset stepped into the middle of the circle and bent down. The animals immediately gravitated towards her, making gleeful noises. Sunset giggled and hugged every animal that came within her reach. Sudden concern appeared in her green eyes. "Gregor and Hoofven are missing!"

"Two yaks," Hiccup explained at everyone's confused expressions. He had known Sunset long enough to keep track of the animals and the names Sunset gave them.

"Mulch found two yaks and brought them to the Great Hall," Stoick said slowly. "How did you know there were two yaks missing?"

"How did you even know _which _two yaks were missing?" Snotlout asked in disbelief.

"I know who all the animals are," Sunset said seriously. "And I know exactly how many there are of each species."

A chicken jumped into her lap and Sunset stroked its feathers. "Isn't everything much better now that dragons are your friends?" She cooed. The chicken clucked in apparent agreement.

"Alright, alright. You've had your tearful reunion. But unlike them, you don't have fur or wool or feathers. Get back here before you get frostbite," Gobber chided gently. Sunset obeyed, going back to stand next to Gobber and he slung an arm around her shoulders. "I still don't know how you do that."

Sunset smiled as Featherton curled up by her feet. "Neither do I. All I know is that I _really _like animals. And animals really like me."

Stoick smiled and squeezed his son's shoulder. "Sunset's really something as well," he whispered.

Hiccup grinned fondly at his best human friend. "She definitely is."

And he wouldn't change her for anything in the world.

...

Morning came and the storm was over. An arctic fog clouded the air and mountains of snow meant it would be a while before the people of Berk set foot outside.

The dragons shook the snow off of their wings and the teens began urging the animals along, which was an easy task with Sunset at the lead. Stoick sent Hiccup a proud smile before following after the crowd. Hiccup beamed happily and hurried to catch up.

The Vikings made it to the Great Hall, sheep slung over their backs. Stoick opened the doors and the Vikings inside cheered happily upon seeing them. Mulch sighed with relief. "**They're alright!**"

"So are the animals," Bucket said, his mood greatly improved now that his headache was gone.

Mulch eyed the entering dragons hesitantly. "And here come the dragons. This won't be good."

But to his surprise, Hookfang lowered his head, revealing a trio of sheep riding on his back. They hopped off and _baa'd _thankfully. Mulch chuckled. "Well, would you look at that."

"Hey, guys!" Hiccup called eagerly. "The chickens are laying eggs!"

The crowd cheered. Bucket grinned. "Oh! So chickens do lay eggs!"

Hiccup placed the chicken on the ground and stood beside his dad. He glanced around the Great Hall, filling with happiness. The farm animals and the dragons were now friends. Stoick closed the doors tightly and smiled at his son. He walked off to see how everyone was holding up and Hiccup sat on the floor beside Sunset, who was stroking Toothless on the head with Woolworth in her lap.

"Isn't it ironic," Sunset spoke. "That after so many years of hurting dragons because we feared them, we discover that they actually have instincts to protect us?"

Hiccup smiled, watching as Stormfly folded her wing protectively over some sheep. "**Life on Berk just got a little warmer.**"


	4. Unwelcome Dragon Guest

**I do not own Dragons: Riders of Berk. Direct quotes from the series are bolded.**

**Unwelcome Dragon Guest**

"Alright, guys!" Hiccup called as he flew Toothless over the forest with his friends following behind. "It's time for low-level evasive manoeuvres!"

Sunset hung on to Hiccup's waist as they twisted over, under and around trees. She glanced around to see how their friends were doing and smirked when Snotlout crashed into a branch, getting twigs in his nose and ears. "It's a good thing we're in tune with Toothless or else we might end up like that."

Hiccup laughed and followed her gaze. He frowned quizzically when Fishlegs and Meatlug did not appear from the entanglement of trees. "Anyone see Fishlegs?"

"Last night at dinner," Tuffnut answered.

Hiccup shook his head and directed Toothless in the opposite direction in search for his friend. They circled the forest and Sunset pointed below. "There!"

They landed and observed Fishlegs, who was caught between two branches. His dragon was in the tree behind him, stuck high in the limbs. "There you are, Fishlegs! Are you alright?"

"Perfectly fine!" Fishlegs said, face heating up in embarrassment. "I was just hanging out, enjoying the view-okay, I crashed. I admit it."

Hiccup studied Fishlegs for a moment before jumping up and grabbing his pants. He attempted to pull him loose but only succeeded in pulling off his pants. Sunset covered her eyes. "Sorry." Hiccup apologized.

"It's okay," Fishlegs sighed. "It's not like I have any dignity left."

"Well, you're in there pretty tight," Hiccup scratched his chin thoughtfully. "I think I know a way to get you down but you'll have to stay perfectly still."

Fishlegs was immediately suspicious. "What are you thinking of doing?"

Hiccup turned to Toothless. "Be real careful, buddy. He's not wearing pants."

"Okay, I'm a little nervous about-"

Toothless launched a blast at the tree, knocking Fishlegs loose. The Night Fury caught the boy before he landed on the ground. "Uh, thanks." Fishlegs smiled. "I'll take those." He grabbed his pants from Hiccup and yanked them on.

"You can open your eyes now," Hiccup told Sunset. The redhead removed her hands and came to stand beside her best friend.

"How are we going to get Meatlug-?" Sunset began but a giant crash cut her off. She turned to see Meatlug on the ground, half of the tree with her.

"Can we keep this between us?" Fishlegs asked as he went to check on his dragon. "Meatlug is sensitive about her weight and I don't want anyone knowing she broke a tree."

"It's locked up tight," Sunset promised, pretending to lock her lips.

"What happened?" Hiccup asked.

"A flaming squirrel jumped out at us while we were flying!" Fishlegs exclaimed.

Hiccup and Sunset exchanged dubious looks. "A flaming squirrel?"

"It could have been a chipmunk or a rat." When his friends still looked skeptical, Fishlegs pouted and mounted Meatlug. "Whatever it was, it scared us, okay?"

Hiccup watched the two fly away. He shook his head and started to climb onto Toothless. "I've heard a lot of crazy things, but a flaming squirrel-"

Before he could finish his sentence a flaming ball zipped past the trio. Hiccup fell to the ground in surprise. Sunset stared after the mysterious flying fireball. "Did you see that?"

"I sure did." Hiccup got to his feet and the two hurried in the direction the 'flaming squirrel'. They peered over a smoking log and spotted a tiny, red dragon curled up between two rocks. Curious, Hiccup and Sunset inched forwards. "Hey there, squirt." Hiccup said softly. "Who may you be?"

He reached out a hand and the tiny dragon snapped at it, feeling threatened. "Settle down," Hiccup soothed. "I'm not gonna hurt you."

"I've never seen a dragon like him before." Sunset said in awe.

Toothless crept forward and sniffed the air. Not liking the new dragon's scent, he snarled. Hiccup frowned. "Hey now, don't be like that."

"I think we may have discovered a new species," Sunset said excitedly.

Not at all liking the fact his humans were straying closer to the little menace, Toothless got in front of them and started pushing them away. The teens dug their heels into the dirt to keep from being shoved away. "Toothless, what's wrong with you?" Hiccup demanded.

"The little guy looks like he's hurt," Sunset said in concern.

While Sunset kept Toothless by her side, Hiccup approached the tiny dragon. "I'm your friend," Hiccup assured the dragon. He removed a few blades of dragon nip from his pocket and held it out. The tiny dragon growled. "It's okay, it's only dragon nip."

The dragon sniffed it cautiously before perking up and flying into Hiccup's arms. Toothless roared unhappily. "Come on, Toothless," Sunset scolded. "Be nice to the little guy."

"Ouch!" Hiccup yelped, holding the dragon out. "Okay, a little dragon with really sharp claws."

"Is that the first thing we're adding to the book, then?" Sunset grinned.

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Very funny. Let's go fix this guy up."

...

After Hiccup tended to the dragon's injuries, he brought him to the arena where Sunset had gathered the other riders. The teens stared at the little dragon in amazement as he scuttled about the arena. "This is fantastic!" Fishlegs exclaimed, over the moon. "We get to study a new species!"

"It doesn't look like a flaming squirrel to me," Tuffnut tilted his head at different angles.

"We have no idea the power this dragon could be capable of!" Fishlegs said, close to squealing with pure glee.

Tuffnut bent down and glared at the small dragon. "Flame!"

In response, the dragon bit Tuffnut on the nose."AGH! Get him off! I am hurt! I am very much hurt!"

Ruffnut burst into laughter, but quickly stopped when it was her who was suddenly under attack. "Ow!"

Her brother snickered, rubbing his red nose. "It's funny when it happens to someone else."

"Alright, guys, knock it off." Hiccup said seriously. "We have to decide what to do with him. The little guy's hurt!"

"What about me?" Tuffnut asked indigently.

"You'll be fine," Sunset said dismissively. "Junior, on the other hand, is frightened. I'm sure he'll settle down."

"Actually, we don't really know _what _he'll do." Fishlegs pointed out.

"And someone has to take him home," Astrid added, crossing her arms.

In unison everyone stepped back, leaving Sunset and Hiccup in the middle of the circle. The two glanced around in surprise before smiling. "Well we've been sharing stuff since we were three years old." Sunset stroked the dragon's head.

"You want to take him home?" Hiccup asked. He cast a glance at Toothless, who was eyeing the new dragon with dislike. "I don't think it would be a good idea to have Toothless and this little guy under the same roof."

"Sure," Sunset gathered the little dragon in her arms. "I don't think Gobber will mind a dragon this size."

"Perfect," Hiccup clapped his hands. "Just bring him over to my place for a while. I want to sketch him in the book right away."

"You got it," Sunset followed Hiccup from the arena, Toothless trailing grumpily behind.

...

The first thing Stoick said when the teens entered was, "Absolutely not!"

Hiccup and Sunset glanced at each other in confusion as Toothless went to sit beside the fire pit, which was currently being stocked by Stoick. "What do you mean?" Hiccup asked.

"Don't play dumb with me. That's not today's fish delivery in Sunset's arms. I have a one-dragon limit, Hiccup." Stoick said sternly, tossing another piece of wood into the pit.

"It's a flaming squirrel, actually." Hiccup joked.

"I don't really want one of those either." Stoick retorted.

"Relax, Dad. Sunset is bringing him home."

"Oh. Well, that's alright then." Stoick tossed the last piece of wood into the fire. "Alright, Toothless, light it up."

Toothless prepared the gas, but before he could fire the small dragon in Sunset's arms let out a fire blast, setting the wood aflame. Toothless jumped back in surprise. Stoick glanced at the little dragon with an impressed expression. "Looks like Toothless got torched. That's his name, by the way, Torch."

"Thanks. You just saved me an agonizing three hours trying to figure out a name." Sunset quipped before following Hiccup to his room. Toothless glowered at Torch, who was resting snugly in his girl's arms.

"Teens," Stoick sighed, dropping into a wooden chair. "They're nothing but trouble, aren't they, Toothless?"

The Night Fury snorted in agreement.

...

After Hiccup sketched Torch in his notebook, Sunset brought him home. The moon shone high in the sky by the time she walked through the door. "Gobber?"

No answer.

"Well, at least you can stay one night for sure." Sunset remarked, setting Torch on the wooden table. She grabbed a piece of fish from the barrel in the backyard and gave it to the little dragon, who gobbled it up. "I don't think Gobber would mind you staying here, but he's...well, Gobber." She let out a tired yawn. "Time for bed, Torch."

Sunset climbed the stairs to her room and removed her boots, vest and helmet. She crawled under the blanket and hugged Torch close. The dragon chirped happily and snuggled with the girl. "Good night, Torch." Sunset mumbled, closing her eyes. "Tomorrow is gonna be a big day."

...

"_GET OUT OF HERE YOU LITTLE BEAST!"_

Sunset rocketed out of bed, the bellow jolting her awake. She glanced frantically around her room. Torch was missing. "Please let Gobber be talking to a Terrible Terror," Sunset pleaded. She raced down the wooden stairs and into Gobber's room where the shout had come from.

Pieces of fabric littered the floor. Her caretaker was running around the room, chasing Torch with a wooden spoon. Sunset quickly inserted herself between the furious Gobber and frightened dragon. "Calm down!"

"Don't tell me to calm down!" Gobber ranted. "I'd like to see you calm down when you discover this...this _thing _has eaten all your socks! The trolls aren't even that rude!"

Sunset gathered Torch in her arms. "This is Torch," she introduced.

"_Oh, _so it's one of yours, hmm?"

Sunset paled, not liking the dangerous tone. "Er, um, I was actually just dragon-sitting for Hiccup."

"I would hope so. I would hate to think of what I'd do if you told me you were _keeping _this little monster."Gobber said warningly.

"Hey, he doesn't know any better!" Sunset said indigently.

"And _you _will be making ten new pairs of socks if you don't return him to Hiccup _right now_." Gobber snapped, glaring down at his charge.

"It's gotta be three in the morning!"

"Not my problem." Gobber crossed his arms.

"You have no heart!"

"Mmm-hmm." Gobber said idly, pushing Sunset for the door. "Return. That. To Hiccup. _Now._"

Scowling, Sunset stormed into the night wearing nothing but her pine green leggings and grey tunic. "Sorry, buddy." She said solemnly to the tiny dragon in her arms. "My caretaker just doesn't understand dragons and animals like I do."

The girl walked up the slope to Hiccup's house and in her frustration with Gobber she forget to gently enter the house. The door slammed against the wall, the noise loud enough to wake the normally heavy-sleeper Stoick. The man charged into the living room, waving the sword he kept beside his bed madly. Sunset shrieked in panic and dove to the ground. "IT'S ME!"

Stoick froze and stared at the cowering girl with a mixed expression of fury and confusion. "Are you mad?" Stoick demanded, tossing his sword aside and hauling the girl to her feet. "I could have taken your head off!"

"Thank you, for not." Sunset stroked an agitated Torch comfortingly.

At that moment Hiccup and Toothless bounded down the stairs, having heard Stoick's bellows and Sunset's screams. "Is everything okay?" Hiccup asked frantically.

"Everything's fine. Sunset was just about to tell me why she came barging into my house in the middle of the night." Stoick glared at Sunset. "And it better be a good reason."

Sunset blinked. "...Torch ate all of Gobber's socks." She held out the small dragon, who chirped with pride.

Stoick stared at the girl for a long moment before (to Sunset's relief) bursting into laughter. "_All _of his socks?"

"Every one except the pair on his feet." Sunset confirmed. She handed Torch to Hiccup and smiled apologetically. "You know Gobber. He relies heavily on first impressions."

"It's cool," Hiccup assured her. Toothless growled at Torch, who yipped back.

"Alright, that's enough of that." Stoick yawned. "It's back to bed for all of us. I'll walk you home, Sunset."

"It's okay," Sunset said as she headed for the door. "I don't have a far way to go."

"You gonna give Gobber a piece of your mind when you get back?" Hiccup asked.

"You bet." Sunset said determinedly, storming for home.

Hiccup chuckled and carried Torch up to his room. Torch immediately jumped from his arms and settled on Toothless' slab of rock. Toothless growled and was about to throw him off when Hiccup spoke. "Look, Toothless. He made a home for himself. You don't mind sharing your bed for the night, right?"

Toothless snarled and jumped into the rafters. Hiccup shook his head and crawled into bed. "Quiet, you. Or else I'll be sending _you _to Sunset next. I wonder if Gobber will let her keep a Night Fury long term."

Toothless grumbled and settled down, shooting the smug little dragon below a contemptuous glare.

Just as the Night Fury had fallen asleep, a noise in the distance woke him up. Eyes narrowed, Toothless jumped out of the loft window and raced in the direction of the noise. He came upon a cliff edge overlooking a valley. Toothless glared at a faint orange glow in the distance.

He had a feeling that strange glow was connected to the little nuisance that was currently sleeping his bed.

...

The next day Hiccup brought Torch back to the arena. The teens gathered around the little dragon, curious as to what he was capable of. The little dragon scuttled across the table he had been placed on, chirping playfully.

"It's time to figure out what you are, Torch." Hiccup said, his notebook opened and ready.

"I can't believe we're documenting a new species!" Fishlegs said eagerly.

"I already checked the book of dragons and there was nothing in there that looks like Torch." Hiccup informed.

Fishlegs' eyes widened. "That means we can _name it!_"

Snotlout grinned and waved his arm in the air. "I am totally gonna name the snot out of Torch!"

Astrid brought over a measuring scroll and rolled it across Torch's wingspan. "20 inches," she relayed.

Sunset whistled. "That's a big wingspan for a little guy."

Snotlout popped over Sunset's shoulder. "**Big Wing! Big Span!**"

"Not in my ear, Snotlout!" Sunset cried, shoving the boy away.

"Can I do the claw test?" Fishlegs asked hopefully.

"Go right ahead," Astrid invited, handing her friend a spare scroll. Fishlegs held the scroll in front of Torch, who instantly sliced it apart in two swipes.

Fishlegs studied the sharp hooks curiously. "The talons are razor-like!"

"**Sharp-Claw! Razor-Feet! Razor-Sharp-Claw-Talon-Feet!**" Snotlout cried rapidly. Sunset failed to hold in her giggles and everyone else stared at the over-eager boy in amusement.

Hiccup wrote the latest findings into the Book of Dragons. Fishlegs bounced up and down excitedly. "You guys know what comes next, right?"

"**Not really**," Hiccup admitted.

"The Eel-Reaction Test totally comes next!" Fishlegs exclaimed. He rummaged through the basket on the table and pulled out a smoked eel. The other dragons immediately raced in the opposite direction when they laid eyes upon their greatest fear.

Torch, on the other hand, ate it.

Everyone stared in amazement. Snotlout broke the awed silence with, "**Eel-Eater!** That's a great one!"

"One of your better ones," Sunset admitted.

Hiccup rolled his eyes and turned to Fishlegs. "Has there ever been a dragon-?"

"Never," Fishlegs shook his head, knowing what Hiccup was about to ask him. "We're in uncharted territory."

"You're one of a kind, Torch." Sunset cooed, stroking his head. Hiccup smiled.

"Yeah, he's definitely special."

"We should do the fly test next!" Fishlegs suggested excitedly.

"Hmm. Maybe if Torch saw Toothless fly, it would get him in the air." Hiccup glanced up through the chained roofing at Toothless, who was sitting on a crag overlooking the sea. "It's time to fly, Toothless."

The Night Fury glanced down at Hiccup for a brief moment before resuming his previous position. "Come on, Toothless!" Sunset called. "What's the matter?"

Snotlout grinned and sauntered over to Hookfang. "It's sad when the dragon no longer listens to his master. Let's do this, Hookfang!"

Torch immediately focussed on the pair, chirping curiously. Hookfang pushed off the ground, hovering gently for a moment. Snotlout grinned smugly-which turned to panic as Hookfang flew out of the arena. "Dang it Hoooookfang!"

Hookfang spun and twisted through the sky. He performed a series of aerial acrobatics that had Snotlout holding on for dear life. His friends watched from the arena with amusement as Snotlout failed once more in controlling his dragon. Toothless was unamused by the whole matter, his gaze never leaving its horizontal direction.

Hookfang swooped back into the arena, allowing Snotlout to tumble to the ground. The boy panted heavily and glanced at Torch. "It's your turn," he wheezed.

Torch crawled forward eagerly. "You don't have to live up to my standards," Snotlout added. "Just do what you can do."

Torch began to fly in clumsy circles around the table. Hiccup frowned in concern. "Maybe his wing is broken-"

But before he could finish his sentence, a spark came from Torch's mouth. The teens stepped back as Torch began to spin faster and faster, the spark glowing brighter and emitting a strong heat. Torch twirled into the air, wings flapping madly and leaving behind a trail of fire. The teens gasped in awe.

Torch finished his flight and landed in the middle of the arena, chirping proudly. He jumped into Sunset's arms and nuzzled his face against Hiccup's shoulder. "You're one fantastic dragon," Hiccup praised.

"And that is one fantastic burn mark!" Tuffnut exclaimed, pointing at the arena floor.

"Torch flew just like a typhoon!" Fishlegs exclaimed.

"And came back like a boomerang," Astrid added.

"**Hot-Spitter! Flaming-Comebacker!**" Snotlout cried.

"Typhoomerang," Fishlegs said dramatically, waving his arms in the air.

"We're going with Fishlegs' suggestion," Hiccup said, writing the name down in the book. Snotlout pouted and Fishlegs looked ready to pass out.

The Typhoomerang species was born.

...

Hiccup sat at his desk that night, reviewing the newest chapter in the book. Torch waddled about the floor with Hiccup's hat on his head. The Typhoomerang jumped on Hiccup's desk and chirped playfully at the boy. Hiccup wrinkled his nose and growled back.

Outside on the roof, Toothless listened to Hiccup and Torch play with irritation. A sudden, ferocious growl grabbed his attention and the Night Fury spotted the same orange glow rising in the distance. Believing that the creature in the forest was a relation to Torch Toothless bounded back into Hiccup's room. The sudden appearance of his dragon startled Hiccup, causing the boy to knock over his charcoal. He watched in dismay as it shattered against the floor. "Toothless! Look what you made me do."

Toothless roared, frustrated that his friend wasn't realizing the danger that was on the horizon.

"I'm going to get something to clean up this mess. Toothless, settle down." Hiccup ordered and went downstairs.

Toothless growled at Torch, but stopped when he heard the ferocious roar once more. Toothless glanced through the roof-top window and moved towards it. Torch, not wanting Toothless to investigate the strange sound, clamped down on his tail.

Misinterpreting this action, Toothless snarled, fed up with the unwanted houseguest. He chased Torch around the room. Feeling threatened, Torch shot a small flame at the dragon, accidently setting the wooden floorboards on fire.

A panicked shout came from downstairs, alerting the two dragons that their friend had noticed the fire. Hiccup raced up the stairs and spotted Toothless snarling viciously at Torch. He grabbed his blanket and beat the flames out. Torch jumped into Hiccup's arms when the boy had finished putting out his fire. "Toothless!" Hiccup exclaimed, misunderstanding the situation. "What did you do that for?"

Hurt and upset, Toothless fled out the window and into the night. Hiccup watched him go in worry. Torch chirped softly. "I know, bud. He's beginning to worry me too."

...

Toothless raced through the village and ended up at Gobber's house. He let out a roar and perked up hopefully when the glow of a candle appeared in the top floor window. If Hiccup wouldn't listen, then Sunset would.

The girl peered down and gasped upon seeing Toothless. She quickly ran outside. "Toothless, what's wrong?" Sunset asked worriedly, stroking his head.

Toothless growled pleadingly, nudging the girl to his saddle. Sunset studied him for a moment. "Is this really important?"

Toothless nodded furiously.

Deciding that maybe what Toothless had to show her would explain his odd behaviour, Sunset climbed on his back. "Let's go, buddy."

Delighted, Toothless took off into the air. Sunset was careful to set the tailfin movements to Toothless' predetermined flight pattern. The dragon flew in the direction of the distressed roars he had been hearing for the past few nights. He came upon a clearing where two Typhoomerangs close in appearance to Torch were playing.

Sunset gasped in disbelief. "I don't believe it!"

Suddenly, a boar charged at the two dragons. They yelped in panic and scurried away. Concerned, Sunset was about to direct Toothless to help them when a giant Typhoomerang came to the rescue. Sunset gaped as what she could only assume to be the mother spiralled into the air, creating a steady torrent of flame to trap the boar that threatened her children.

"Whoa," Sunset breathed. "Hiccup needs to see this."

Toothless snorted, finally relieved that someone had listened to him.

Sunset stared at the flames hesitantly for a moment. The mother dragon and her babies had gone, leaving behind the doomed boar. "Aw, Toothless, you know how I am with animals, right?"

Toothless nodded in understanding. He gladly swooped down to save the boar, as it was the least he could do for his girl. The boar squealed in panic and fury upon being snatched, unsure if it would rather be eaten by a dragon or die in a fire. Toothless brought the boar a safe distance away from the flames. Sunset dropped to the ground and crouched in front of the wild pig.

The boar snorted, feeling oddly comforted in this human's presence.

"Hi there," Sunset cooed. "I'm Sunset Hockerson. It's nice to meet you."

Cautiously, the boar moved forward and nudged against Sunset's hand. The girl rubbed its snout lovingly. "Now, what gender are you?" She asked, gently lifting the boar up to see. "Well, hello good sir."

The boar snorted softly. Sunset giggled and set him down. "You're very welcome." She got up and went to climb on Toothless, but the boar tugged on her legging. "Would you like to come with me?"

A snort of confirmation.

"Is it alright if we bring the boar with us?" Sunset asked.

Toothless nodded, wondering why she couldn't have asked him that when she and Hiccup brought Torch home. Sunset mounted Toothless with the boar in her lap. Toothless flew back to Berk just as dawn broke.

"You need a name," Sunset told the wild pig. "I name every animal that lives on Berk. I think I'll name you...Lucky. 'Cause it sure is lucky for you we came by."

Toothless stopped at the grazing fields first. Sunset placed the boar in the pen and patted his head. "Everyone, this is Lucky," she introduced to the curious animals, who were used to Sunset bringing by new additions. "Lucky, this is everyone. I'll come back to visit soon, promise!"

Lucky snorted in farewell before carefully going to interact with the other animals. Sunset flew back to her house, where she wanted to put on her boots, vest and helmet before going to tell Hiccup of what she had just seen.

Unfortunately, Gobber was waiting for her outside. And he wasn't happy.

"Who do you think you are?" He thundered, glaring as the girl dismounted Toothless.

"What do you mean?"

"First you bring in a Terror that eats my socks and now you completely disregard curfew rules to go flying about in the middle of the night!"

"Okay, it was a Typhoomerang that ate your socks, not a Terror." Sunset corrected. "And I've been flying out at night before."

"With my permission," Gobber stressed. "How would you like it if you woke up at four in the morning only to discover I was gone?"

"That happens all the time!" Sunset snapped, growing frustrated.

"Okay, enough smart talk. You are grounded!" Gobber proclaimed, grabbing the girl by the back of her tunic and dragging her inside. "And you! Go to Hiccup!" Gobber instructed an annoyed Toothless. He slammed the door shut and dropped Sunset to the floor. The girl whirled around, furious.

"You can't do that!" She shrieked.

"Oh yes I can. And I just did."

"I have something extremely important to tell Hiccup!"

"I'm sure you do." Gobber rolled his eyes and pointed towards the main room of the house. "Chores. Now."

"Fine," Sunset said stonily. She grabbed a broom from beside the door and started sweeping angrily. _Doesn't matter. Once Gobber goes to work I'll sneak out and meet Hiccup._

"And I think I'll take the day off today. Give us some good bonding time, yes?" Gobber smirked, knowing exactly what his charge was thinking.

"_AAGGHH!"_

...

Now that his main news reporter was incapacitated, Toothless decided to fix the problem himself. He raced over to Hiccup and Torch, who were sitting on a slope overlooking the village. Hiccup glanced up, relieved when he saw his dragon. "Toothless, I was worried-"

Toothless lunged at Torch, who shrieked and crawled onto Hiccup's shoulder. "Toothless! What's the matter with you?" Hiccup snapped, getting to his feet and glaring at the Night Fury. Toothless glared back, softly growling.

"Toothless, I don't know what's gotten into you. What I _do _know is that I don't like it." Hiccup said firmly, taking Torch into his arms.

Frustrated beyond belief, Toothless ran off. Hiccup collapsed to the ground and stared at Torch helplessly. The Typhoomerang chirped. "It's not your fault, big guy. I think Toothless is just a little jealous. Okay, maybe a _lot _jealous." The boy sighed, unsure of what to do about the situation.

_I bet Sunset will have a solution. _"How does a visit to Sunset sound?"

Torch chirped happily. Hiccup smiled and walked to Sunset's house. He pushed open the door to find Sunset sweeping like a mad woman. "Sun?"

The girl whipped around. _"Hiccup! _I have to-"

"Ah-ah-ah!" Gobber suddenly blocked Hiccup from Sunset's view, pushing the boy outside and closing the door firmly against Sunset's protests. "Sorry, Hiccup. But you won't be able to see Sunset for a few days."

"Why?"

"She's grounded. She went flying with Toothless at three this morning. Nearly gave me a heart attack when I didn't find her in bed when I went to check the fire."

Hiccup smiled softly, relieved that Sunset had taken Toothless out to cool down a bit. "How was he?"

"Toothless? Seemed like he always was to me." Gobber shrugged.

Hiccup mulled this over. "Alright. Thanks, Gobber. Tell Sunset I'm going to be lost without her for the next couple of days."

A heavy hammering came from the other side of the door. Gobber growled in irritation. "You may be lost for the rest of your life. If she keeps this up, I can't be held responsible for any drastic actions."

The boy laughed and went to drop Torch off at home before going to find Toothless. It seemed like the only way to keep both dragons calm was to separate them.

...

It was dusk by the time Hiccup found Toothless sitting on the edge of the cliff. "We're going for a ride, bud." Hiccup said, mounting the Night Fury.

Toothless perked up, believing this was his chance to show Hiccup evidence of Torch's protective mother. The pair flew over the mountains of Berk, the sky pink against their backs. For a moment, Hiccup believed that everything was normal again.

And then Toothless ignored his directions.

Hiccup yelped in confusion when Toothless soared right past the cove and over the forest. "Toothless! We're going to the cove!"

He jerked his body but Toothless continued to ignore his commands. Hiccup scowled and adjusted the tailfin, forcing Toothless to turn around and head in the desired direction. Toothless barked in dismay as they twisted in the air, flying away from the severe burn mark in the clearing that matched the one Torch had made in the arena.

Hiccup landed Toothless in the cove and dismounted. "Toothless, you need to stay here." Hiccup ordered. "I never thought bringing Torch home would cause you to act like this. I'm going to keep the two of you separated until I can come up with a better idea."

Toothless hissed at the very idea of being separated from his friend. When Hiccup made to leave Toothless blocked his way. Hiccup frowned. "I'm serious, Toothless."

Toothless growled in protest. Hiccup crossed his arms. "Hmm. A large, out-of-control Night Fury blocking my exit." He rocked back on his heels, pretending to surrender. Toothless relaxed slightly as Hiccup took a step back-only to twirl on his prosthetic foot and dart around the unprepared dragon. Toothless roared helplessly as Hiccup retreated.

The boy glanced down at Toothless for a moment and sighed. He hated doing this to his best friend, but he really didn't know what else to do. Hiccup departed from the cove, Toothless watching sadly.

It was going to be a long night.

...

Astrid noticed the following morning that Hiccup was not quite with it. He had told her what he had done and she agreed that it was the right thing to do. She put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Toothless will be fine," she assured him.

Hiccup sighed. "I know..."

Snotlout leaned on Hookfang's horn, eyeing Hiccup thoughtfully. "What if Toothless doesn't snap out of it? Then Hiccup and Sunset will be out one dragon and can't be the leaders of the dragon academy!"

Astrid shot Snotlout a dry look. "And then as their second-in-command, _I'll _take over."

"Guys! Guys!"

The teens looked up as Tuffnut and Ruffnut, riding their Zippleback, charged into the arena. "You'll never believe what we just saw!"

"We're having a serious political discussion here," Snotlout said indigently.

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Go ahead, guys. What did you see?"

"The whole forest was torched!" Ruffnut exclaimed.

"It was the ultimate destruction," Tuffnut agreed.

Hiccup frowned, glancing at the little dragon in his arms. He recalled Toothless' attempt to divert him from the cove-almost as if he had wanted to show him something, now that he thought about it. "Bring me to it," Hiccup said firmly.

The kids mounted their dragons (with Hiccup behind Astrid on Stormfly), but before they could lift off Sunset burst into the arena, flushed and panting. Hiccup stared at his best friend in surprise. "Sunset? What are you-?"

"_We'll talk in the air!" _Sunset shrieked. She scrambled onto Hookfang, who gladly dipped his neck so the girl could climb on. _"Fly! Fly!"_

Hookfang immediately obeyed, soaring out of the arena with his friends following behind. As they soared into the sky they spotted Gobber glaring furiously up at them and shaking his fist. _"SUNSET!"_

"Can you teach me how to do that?" Snotlout asked, referring to how his dragon had instantly obeyed Sunset's command.

"Later," she wheezed, trying to catch her breath after her mad escape from Gobber's clutches. "Wait, where are we going?"

"We're going to show everyone the torched forest!" Ruffnut said gleefully.

"Oh, good. That's what I wanted to talk to Hiccup about." Sunset twisted around so she could see Hiccup. "There's this giant Typhoomerang in the forest-"

"She wouldn't happen to look like that, would she?" Fishlegs asked nervously, pointing ahead.

The teens looked to see a giant red dragon flying a few yards away, scouring the forest floor and breathing fire. Hiccup's eyes strayed to the familiar burn mark in the clearing before everything made sense. "Oh, no."

"You're telling me," Sunset agreed. She frowned suddenly. "Where's Toothless?"

"I...left him in the cove." Hiccup muttered, ashamed.

"Aw, Hiccup!"

"That guy looks really mad," Tuffnut remarked.

Hiccup rubbed his forehead. "Well, it's a she, and she has a right to be mad considering we have her baby."

They landed on the ground near the burn mark. Torch happily climbed onto Sunset's shoulder. Astrid stared at Torch in disbelief. "He's only a baby?"

"Apparently," Hiccup sighed. "This is what Toothless was trying to tell me."

"You didn't know," Sunset said soothingly. "But right now, we need to leave Torch here and get the heck away."

Torch glanced up at the sky, recognizing his mother and giving a loud chirp. The teens paled when the mother Typhoomerang looked directly at them. She roared in fury and dived towards them, breathing fire all the way.

Sunset dropped Torch to the ground and shooed him along. "Your mother wants you!"

The teens raced for their dragons, but Torch was following Hiccup and Sunset with his mother not far behind. "You guys get out of here!" Hiccup hollered. "We're going to lead the mother away from the village!"

Hiccup and Sunset ran away from the teens, Torch and his mother chasing after them. Astrid watched them go in worry. _Please be careful._

Torch's mother roared loudly. Sunset winced and glanced over her shoulder. "Torch, I think it would be a good idea if you went to your mother right now."

"Unless you want to see us burned to a crisp," Hiccup added as they twisted through the trees.

Sunset suddenly noticed they were running in the direction of the cove. "I hope we make it," she muttered.

"We will," Hiccup panted. As Torch's mother was about to close in, Hiccup and Sunset reached the edge of the rocky slopes that formed the circular cove. "**Toothless!**" Hiccup cried as he and Sunset jumped off the edge.

Toothless soared up to catch the teens and Hiccup quickly stuck his foot in the pedal, guiding them out of the cove. "I'm so sorry, buddy." Hiccup breathed as they avoided a fire attack. "I should have trusted you."

"He's _very _sorry," Sunset added as they swooped over the sea with Torch's mother following after them. "Okay, I think it's evasive maneuver time!"

Toothless barked in understanding, twisting under sea stacks with ease. But the large Typhoomerang did not give up her pursuit. "Why is she still following us?" Hiccup moaned.

A sudden pinch in Sunset's back caused the girl to yelp and turn around. There was Torch clinging to her vest. "Torch, you really need to be with your mother!"

But the little dragon refused to move. Hiccup sighed. "Time to try something else. Toothless, we're going to use her size against her. Up!"

Toothless entered a steep climb with the mother dragon following after him. Hiccup waited until they had climbed high enough into the sky before ordering, "Down!"

Toothless transitioned into a sharp nosedive, leading the mother back towards the forest. Just before he struck the tips of the trees he pulled up, gliding gently. Torch's mother, however, did not have the graceful agility to copy Toothless' move and crashed into the trees. Toothless landed in front of the defeated Typhoomerang. "I hope she's not hurt," Hiccup said worriedly, not wanting to have injured Torch's mother.

Torch jumped off of Sunset and scuttled over to his mother, chirping in concern. He nuzzled against her face and the large dragon opened her eyes. Two more baby dragons climbed down from the mother's back and Torch happily reunited with his siblings.

Hiccup sighed with relief. "The family is back together." He stroked Toothless lovingly on the head and the Night Fury nudged his hand, happy that everything had worked out.

Torch and his siblings climbed on their mother's back. The mother gave the teens a grateful roar before taking off into the air with a spiral of sparks. Sunset waved. "Bye, Torch!"

"See you, big guy!" Hiccup smiled. He turned to his best friends and grinned. "Let's go home."

Toothless purred in approval.

His family was back together again.

...

It had taken a lot of yelling (mostly from Gobber) and a lot of pleading (mostly from Hiccup and Sunset) but eventually Gobber accepted that Sunset would not have defied his rules unless it was extremely important. Getting off with only extra chores as a punishment, Sunset happily lounged against Toothless with Hiccup as Gobber played the pan pipes he had recently found. Stoick stirred the pot of soup resting over the fire and the teens took turns feeding Toothless. The glow from the fire illuminated the dark Haddock house, giving everyone a warm feeling inside.

"I should have realized you were just trying to protect me, Toothless." Hiccup said, stroking the Night Fury's chin. "It's what you do."

Toothless suddenly regurgitated a piece of fish into Hiccup's lap. The boy laughed softly. "And this is also something you do."

Toothless purred lovingly, wrapping his tail securely around his friends. "You know, communication between dragon and rider goes both ways." Sunset murmured, eyes fluttering shut.

"I know," Hiccup yawned, leaning his head against hers. "The dragon must follow the riders lead, but sometimes the rider must listen to the dragon as well. And sometimes, what the dragon is trying to say is what you really need to hear."

**Sunset has a unique ability with animals-I wouldn't necessarily call it a special power. It's more like a gift. She has a way with animals and her gift doesn't work **_**all **_**the time. As for dragons, she has to work like everyone else to gain their trust, but sometimes she'll come across a dragon that just instantly trusts her. **

**So yeah. Sunset is kind of an animal whisperer :P**


	5. Something's Fishy in Berk

**I do not own Dragons: Riders of Berk. Direct quotes from the series are bolded.**

**Something's Fishy in Berk**

Hiccup and Sunset fell gently through the morning sky, their arms outstretched and eyes closed in bliss. The wind blew gently through their hair as they slowly spiralled. "Is it time?" Sunset asked, enjoying the sensation.

"Mmm-hmm," Hiccup responded. In unison, the two friends flipped over and faced downward. Their eyes opened to see that the water was meters away. Before they impacted Toothless swooped down, catching his friends with skill. Hiccup adjusted himself into the saddle as they glided over the water. "Great catch, buddy!"

"A little close to the water," Sunset mused. "But hey, the thrill is always the best part."

Hiccup laughed. They flew up to meet the other riders, who were waiting for their turn. "Alright, Fishlegs. Jump."

"I don't want to!" Fishlegs protested, glancing nervously at the land below.

Hiccup shook his head. "This is a trust exercise, Fishlegs. You need to _trust _that Meatlug will catch you."

"I'd rather do most of my trusting on the ground." Fishlegs said stubbornly.

"Aw, don't be a chicken!" Snotlout grinned in anticipation and threw his arms in the air. "Woo!" He cheered as he fell sideways off of Hookfang and towards the island.

The Monstrous Nightmare did not even notice that Snotlout had jumped off.

Tuffnut scratched his forehead. "Uh...should we let him know that his rider is falling to his death?"

"**Hookfang!**" Astrid called sharply. "Go get him!"

Hookfang looked over at Astrid and the other dragons in confusion. Toothless roared, gesturing below with his head. Hookfang looked down to see Snotlout tumbling through the air, rapidly approaching the ground. "I'm not feeling a whole lotta trust!" He hollered.

Hookfang frantically dove towards his friend. Snotlout managed to get a grip on his dragon's snout, but they were careening towards Mildew's house. "No brakes!" Snotlout shouted as they plummeted through the roof.

Snotlout coughed as dust sprinkled down on him. Hookfang popped his head out of the debris with Snotlout still holding on. The boy slowly glanced around at the axes and other weapons adorning the walls before his gaze landed on Mildew, who towered over him with a furious glare.

"_Go Hookfang!"_

The Monstrous Nightmare made another hole in the roof in his haste to escape. Mildew scowled as more boards and debris rained down. "You will pay for this!" He hollered just before getting struck in the face with a loose board.

The teens watched as Snotlout and Hookfang flew as far away from Mildew's house as possible. "Why do I have a feeling we're gonna hear about this?" Hiccup asked, annoyed.

"Because we are," Sunset shrugged. "Oh look. There goes Mildew now."

Hiccup shook his head. "Alright, let's get this over with. Training is cut short today due to...destruction."

"I like destruction," Tuffnut voiced.

The teens flew towards the island and went their separate ways. Hiccup landed in his front yard, dismounting. "Remind me never to do another trust exercise like that again."

"Sure thing," Sunset agreed as the trio trooped into the house. The teens dropped into the wooden chairs while Toothless sat in between them, yawning.

They didn't have to wait long.

Roughly an hour later Stoick burst into the house, a broken roof shingle clutched in his meaty fist. He slammed it onto the table, glaring at the teens. "I'm pretty sure we had that for dinner last night," Hiccup joked.

Stoick was not amused.

"I'm sure Mildew is making it worse than it really is." Sunset said. "And besides, it was an accident."

"A Monstrous Nightmare and an obnoxious boy crashed through his roof-twice." Stoick snapped.

"Well, if you use the facts then of course it looks bad." Hiccup pointed out.

Stoick pointed out the window. "Out of all the houses in the village it had to be Mildew's! You know how much he hates dragons!"

"You really should have a talk with him about his attitude," Hiccup agreed.

Stoick rubbed his forehead in frustration. "Hiccup, I gave you and Sunset the responsibility of training those dragons. When things go wrong, it reflects upon you."

"That's hardly fair." Sunset frowned.

Stoick ignored this. "And whatever you two do reflects upon me." He slapped his chest to emphasize his point.

"I know, Dad. I'm sorry."

Stoick nodded. "You and your friends are going to fix Mildew's roof-_without _your dragons."

Toothless whined in protest. Hiccup rubbed his head comfortingly. "Hey, you're the lucky one, bud."

"Hold on there, son. You're forgetting something."

Hiccup wrinkled his nose as Stoick removed his boots. "Boot Night," Sunset gagged.

"Dad, it's gonna take a lot more than air to get these things to smell halfway decent," Hiccup said bluntly as he gingerly took the boots and set them outside by the door. Sunset sighed and glanced at the snow that began to fall gently.

"I guess I better go and do Gobber's. It's always best to get it over with." Sunset sighed and scratched Toothless under the chin in farewell before jogging off. Hiccup watched in amusement as his friends also placed their father's boots outside the door, their faces twisted in disgust.

"I can't wait until I have someone put my stinky boots out on Boot Night," Hiccup informed Toothless as he shut the door. "Then I can laugh at them."

Toothless purred in agreement. He didn't like Boot Night either.

...

The morning sun created a gentle glow across the island of Berk. The Vikings sleepily stepped outside to retrieve their boots-only to find them gone.

Stoick opened his door and bent down out of habit. His brow furrowed in confusion when he discovered that his boots were missing. "I'm positive Hiccup put them here yesterday," he muttered to himself. When he straightened up, it was to see Gobber, Mulch, Bucket and Sunset standing in front of him. "What happened to your boots?" Stoick asked in puzzlement.

"They're all gone, Stoick." Gobber informed, shuffling his one, frozen foot. He eyed Sunset's furry brown boots with envy.

"So that's why my feet are so cold." Bucket mused.

"Who would steal every pair of boots from the village?" Stoick demanded, going down the slope to meet his friends. Hiccup exited the house with Toothless following behind. Sunset jogged to stand beside him just as Mildew approached.

"Whoever did this left one big footprint," Mildew said, almost too casually, as he pointed to a set of dragon footprints in the snow with his staff. The other teens climbed up the hill to see what the commotion was about. Fishlegs spotted the footprint and gasped.

"Those are Hideous Zippleback footprints!"

Hiccup and Sunset glanced at each other uncertainly. Neither believed their dragons had done such a thing.

"The half-moon shaped arches give it away," Fishlegs explained when he received quizzical looks from the crowd. "It's obvious dragon stuff."

"So a Zippleback walked through here." Hiccup shrugged. "That doesn't mean it took all of the boots."

"Then let's follow the tracks, shall we?" Mildew suggested. He gestured innocently in the direction of the tracks.

Stoick narrowed his eyes and took up Mildew's suggestion. Sunset and Hiccup eyed Mildew suspiciously before hurrying after the village leader. The other Vikings followed a little ways behind.

The tracks led to the arena, where they discovered a snoozing Zippleback underneath a large pile of boots. Stoick removed a destroyed boot from the pile and frowned. Hiccup and Sunset winced. "This looks really bad." Sunset muttered.

The other Vikings gathered in the arena, furious by the display. "How are we supposed to work in this weather without our boots?" Someone demanded.

"How much more can we stand before something is done about these creatures?" Mildew asked as he came to the front of the crowd. The other Vikings shouted in agreement. Hiccup had a sudden flashback to when Mildew had almost convinced his father to lock up the dragons.

Gobber stormed from the crowd to join Hiccup, Sunset and Stoick. "Oh, listen to you lot! All a bunch of whiners. _I can't feel my feet! _We're Vikings! We live for the cold. Stop complaining, I'll have these boots fixed and good as new!"

"You heard the man," Stoick said loudly. "You'll be getting your boots back."

The crowd mumbled, calmed. Mildew scowled. "You're not going to punish the beasts?"

Stoick shrugged. "They're just boots, Mildew. It's nothing serious."

"You say that now! Dragons are wild. Who knows what they'll do while we sleep?"

Hiccup glared, unable to keep silent any longer. "Dragons don't destroy things on purpose!"

Mildew glowered at the boy. Hiccup continued, "But you _do _have a point."

This admission caught everyone off guard. "Huh?" Mildew asked, taken aback.

"Dragons are wild animals," Sunset explained as she and Hiccup walked over to the sleeping Zippleback. "That's why they need us to keep them in check."

"And that's exactly what we'll do!" Hiccup promised. The loud assurance caused the Zippleback to wake up. Hiccup lowered his voice to a whisper, "Okay, you _really _need to get out of here."

The Zippleback yawned and obeyed, getting to its paws and waddling from the arena. Hiccup and Sunset stared at the new footprint and the footprints they had followed to the arena. Sunset and Hiccup stared in bafflement at the differences before Stoick clapped them on the shoulder.

"If you're going to do something about this I suggest you start now," Stoick said firmly before following the rest of the Vikings out of the ring.

"Uh, yeah. No problem. Sun, get the others and meet me at the old watchtower." Hiccup ordered.

Sunset saluted him. "You got it!" She took off to complete her orders. Hiccup cast one more glance at the odd footprints before hurrying off.

...

"Alright guys," Hiccup said seriously as he and his friends gathered at the old watchtower. "As of tonight we're going on night patrols."

"Awesome!" Tuffnut exclaimed. He paused. "Uh, what's a night patrol?"

"We patrol at night," Hiccup answered simply. "It's a way to keep an eye on the dragons and make sure that they don't misbehave."

"Have you talked to our parents about this?" Fishlegs asked. "Because, well, some of us may not be allowed out after dark."

Snotlout leaned towards the large boy. "What's the matter? Scared?"

"Bad things happen after dark," Fishlegs defended, flushing.

"You guys know Mildew wants the dragons banished." Hiccup reminded them. "This patrol will prevent Mildew from giving my dad a reason to do so."

Ruffnut raised her hands in the air and pretended to shoot. "Do we have permission to shoot first and ask questions later?"

Tuffnut knocked her arms down. "Actually, can we skip the questions?" He snickered.

"There is no shooting!" Sunset said, aghast. "Absolutely no shooting!"

"That's no fun!" Tuffnut pouted.

Astrid smirked. "Of course it isn't. The idea came from Hiccup and Sunset."

Hiccup and Sunset scowled at the blonde. "Okay, sadly, she's right, but still. Not funny." Hiccup said flatly. Astrid shot him an innocent smile.

"We need a name!" Snotlout said eagerly. "Can I pick the name?"

"What do you have in mind?" Hiccup asked cautiously.

"Dragon United Monitoring Brigade!" Snotlout said dramatically, waving his arms in the air.

"That's actually pretty good," Hiccup said, impressed. "We'll go with that."

Astrid stared at Hiccup in disbelief. "You realize the acronym for this is D.U.M.B."

"Too late!" Snotlout cried. "He agreed! Can we make badges too?"

Fishlegs perked up, the idea of patrolling in the dark slowly moving away from the forefront of his mind. "That sounds like fun. Can I help?"

"Sure thing! Let's do this!" Snotlout pumped his fist in the air and took off with Fishlegs and the twins right behind him.

"I'm gonna go make sure they keep things clean," Astrid said. She got to her feet and shook her head. "D.U.M.B." She scoffed.

Hiccup flushed. "Okay, not my brightest moment. Can you tell the others that we'll be meeting here after sunset?"

"Not me Sunset, the occurrence sunset," the girl clarified.

Astrid grinned. "I got that. See you guys later."

The two waved as the blonde departed. Sunset glanced at Hiccup. "Are we really going to be doing this every night for the foreseeable future?"

"It seems like it," Hiccup admitted.

"Then we really ought to work in shifts. Some of us, mostly Snotlout, get _really _intolerable when we don't get enough sleep." Sunset pointed out as the two exited the watchtower.

"I want to give it a go with all of us doing for the first few nights. Then we can go from there." Hiccup compromised.

"Okay," Sunset agreed hesitantly. Under her breath, she muttered, "I have a feeling this isn't going to work out like he hopes."

...

The first night of patrol went by with few mishaps (the only great one being the twins scaring the daylights out of Fishlegs). Satisfied that all dragons were sleeping soundly and behaving, Hiccup and Sunset flew over the village, passively observing.

But even with all seven teens doing patrol, they missed a suspicious figure sneaking into the Great Hall.

...

When breakfast rolled around, the teens were horrified to discover the Great Hall a mess. Deep claw marks were gouged on every table, pillar and even the walls. A few Vikings wandered around, inspecting the damage to see what could be repaired and what was totalled. Fishlegs studied a pair of scratches on a pillar.

"Who could have done this?" Stoick snapped, furious and frustrated as he surveyed the mangled hall.

"A dragon," Fishlegs answered. He pointed to the scratches he was studying. "To be more specific, a Monstrous Nightmare. The spacing of the talons is perfect."

"Thanks so much, Fishlegs." Hiccup scowled in irritation. Fishlegs blinked, confused as to why Hiccup was annoyed with him.

"But we had every dragon accounted for last night!" Astrid exclaimed.

Snotlout rubbed the back of his neck, sheepish. "When you say 'accounted for', what exactly do you mean?"

"Snotlout..."Sunset moaned.

The boy held up his hands in defense. "It's not my fault! I was being harassed by a potential suspect-"Here he pointed to Gobber, who only rolled his eyes. "And he wasn't showing proper respect to the sash!"

Gobber snorted. "I think a D.U.M.B. sash received just the right amount of respect I gave you."

Astrid scowled. "That's it, we're changing the name."

"_Anyway," _Snotlout stressed. "I was questioning the suspect and...I kind of lost track of Hookfang. He only wandered the village for a few-"

"**Minutes?**" Tuffnut asked.

"**Seconds?**" Ruffnut questioned.

"Actually, it's more like a few hours." Snotlout mumbled.

"Oh, that is so much longer than a minute." Tuffnut winced, knowing what the implication would be.

The doors to the Great Hall slammed open and Mildew walked in, looking vaguely content. "Oh, the poor Great Hall! So many memories are now damaged. My three weddings...the three funerals."

"Hookfang must have gone a little wild." Gobber sighed. "Stoick..."

"I know, Gobber. Hiccup, every night, I want the dragons locked up in the arena." Stoick ordered.

Mildew gaped. "That's all?"

"But it doesn't make any sense!" Sunset protested. "Dragons don't just waltz in and destroy places! Look, not even any of the food was touched!" She pointed a finger at the full barrels of fish, which were untouched.

"It's not my job to know why dragons do what they do," Stoick said pointedly. "But it _is _my job to do what I have to do to make sure they don't do any more damage."

The three men left the hall, leaving behind a group of depressed and confused teens.

...

Dusk was nearly approaching when Hiccup, Sunset and the others flew their dragons to the arena. Stoick watched them go with a remorseful sigh. He knew how much the dragons meant to the kids, but it had to be done. Gobber put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "The dragons have to be caged, Stoick. There's no other choice."

"I know, Gobber. But to Hiccup, when I'm punishing them all, I'm punishing _him_. Same goes for Sunset."

Gobber chuckled softly. "Well, those two think that dragons can do no wrong."

"I can only hope Hiccup understands that while I do what's best for him, I'm also trying to do what's best for the village."

...

In the arena, the teens were saying good night to their dragons. Fishlegs sang softly to Meatlug, but the lullaby wasn't working. She shook the boy off, growling softly. "She normally loves a lullaby!" Fishlegs said, upset. "Her whole bedtime routine is messed up-"

"Oh, stop whining." Snotlout snapped.

Ruffnut glared at the boy. "It's your fault we have to keep our dragons here, butt-elf!"

"It wasn't our dragons who went on a rampage," Tuffnut added.

Hiccup sighed, agitated. "I still don't believe it was a dragon that destroyed the Great Hall or stole the boots."

Astrid glanced at Hiccup sympathetically. "We don't want to believe it either, Hiccup, but we saw the proof."

"The Zippleback footprints were shallower than mine!" Sunset exclaimed. She pointed to the remaining supposed Zippleback print. "I could lie down in these things!"

Fishlegs shrugged. "There are many reasons for shallow dragon footprints."

"Like trying to be sneaky!" Ruffnut suggested.

"Okay," Astrid said, willing to hear Sunset and Hiccup out. "How do you two explain the Great Hall?"

A bout of roaring caught their attention. The teens turned to see Barf-Belch and Hookfang snarling at each other. Hiccup sighed when Hookfang flamed up, obviously angry. "Snotlout, can you do something about him? We're trying to think."

"Actually, I think I give up on thinking." Tuffnut spoke. "Way too hard."

Hookfang wandered over to Snotlout, still aflame. He snarled. Hiccup gave Snotlout a pointed glance. The boy shrugged. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm not the boss of him. He always does this when he gets angry."

Hiccup glanced at the Monstrous Nightmare's footprints. They were now large burn marks. Sunset and Hiccup looked at each other excitedly. "**Or when he goes on a rampage!**" They exclaimed in unison.

"This is how we can explain the Great Hall," Hiccup said hurriedly to their confused friends before rushing to mount Toothless. "Dad has to hear about this!"

Astrid watched the two take off on their Night Fury, bemused.

...

The two teens burst into the Great Hall, where dozens of Vikings were fixing the place up. Stoick wandered around, overseeing the repairs and making sure everything was going smoothly. "Dad!" Hiccup said excitedly, running over to his father. "You gotta listen to this!"

Stoick paused and turned to his son expectantly. Hiccup rushed on now that he had his father's attention. "A Monstrous Nightmare flares up when it gets angry. Hookfang would have left burning footprints all around here if he had destroyed the place!"

"And look! No burn marks!" Sunset pointed out.

Stoick shook his head. "Sorry, kids. But I need solid proof. Until you have that, the dragons stay where they are."

Suddenly, a loud explosion came from outside the hall. Startled, Stoick ran outside to see the armoury consumed with flames. Stoick glanced at the panicked Vikings who had responded to the noise. "GRAB SOME BUCKETS AND MOVE!" He thundered.

The Vikings raced about, grabbing buckets of water and tossing them into the fire. Sunset and Hiccup helped put out the flames. Stoick spotted Toothless sitting on a set of stairs near the armoury, observing with puzzlement. "**Toothless?**" Stoick asked in disbelief.

"It was the Night Fury!" A Viking hollered. "I saw him cause the fire!"

Hiccup and Sunset stared at their dragon in surprise. "Not Toothless!"

"Back to work!" Stoick snapped. The teens quickly got back into motion, slinging buckets of water onto the roaring flames. Eventually, the fire was put out, but the armoury did not survive. Everyone crowded around (including the other teens, who raced to help when they noticed the flames from the arena) as Stoick inspected what was left."Every weapon we had is gone!"

"Even Prudence," Gobber mourned, sticking his favourite sword into the ground. "She should have had a good, blood-letting life."

"Their dragon has left us defenceless, Stoick!" Mildew cried, pointing an accusing finger at Hiccup and Sunset.

"Toothless would never do something like this!" Hiccup protested.

"Listening to your boy is what got us into this mess!" Mildew snapped. He leaned in close to the teens, speaking softly so that only Hiccup and Sunset could hear him. "Do you see what happens when you leave your beast alone outside?"

Hiccup and Sunset narrowed their eyes. "What was that?" Sunset asked softly.

"Oh, Cindy!" Gobber cried. "Not you too!"

Stoick rubbed his forehead, knowing what had to be done and feeling awful for having to do it. He placed a firm hand on Hiccup's shoulder. "Son, the damage is too great this time. It's no longer safe to have dragons on Berk. I want them all rounded up and taken to Dragon Island."

Hiccup and Sunset gaped. "**What?!**" They cried, obviously heartbroken.

Stoick sighed heavily and turned to the rest of the villagers. "By tomorrow morning, all dragons will be taken to Dragon Island!"

The crowd cheered happily. Mildew grinned widely.

The other teens gasped at this, horrified. Mildew rubbed his hands together gleefully. "Oh, my birthday has come early this year!"

The crowd of Vikings muttered amongst themselves as they dispersed. Mildew stopped beside Hiccup and Sunset, muttering, "After you drop off that beast, you have to come and fix _my _roof."

The man walked away, snickering. Hiccup and Sunset glared after him.

"This is the worst day of my life," Astrid moaned, her voice cracking.

"Something isn't right," Sunset said.

"You bet something isn't right!" Fishlegs cried. "I'm losing Meatlug!"

"Only for now," Hiccup attempted to assure his friends. "We can fix this!"

"Just stop, Hiccup." Snotlout snapped, miserable. "It's all over."

Hiccup and Sunset watched in dismay as their friends shuffled home. "Hiccup, something stinks, and I have a feeling Mildew is the cause of it."

"You and me both," Hiccup muttered. "Tomorrow, we figure out what's been going on."

"Sounds like a plan."

...

The following dawn Hiccup, Sunset and the teens flew their dragons to Dragon Island. The teens said heartfelt goodbyes to their dragons, all of them devastated. Hiccup stroked Toothless' muzzle. "We'll come back for you, bud. We promise." He said thickly.

Sunset hugged Toothless tightly. "Everything will be fine, Toothless. I swear."

Not understanding why his friends were so sad, Toothless cooed in comfort and walked after them. Hiccup held out a gentle hand. "Sorry, bud." Hiccup said, trying to hold back his emotions so that Toothless wouldn't worry. "I need you here to look after the others."

Toothless finally understands what is going on and whimpers, his eyes begging for Hiccup and Sunset not to leave him. Sunset turned her head away so that the Night Fury would not see her tears. Hiccup took a deep breath and managed a smile. "It's like Sun said, Toothless. Everything is going to be fine."

Toothless nodded slowly, saddened. He waddled forward and nuzzled against his friends. With a sob Sunset bent down and buried her face in his neck. Hiccup hugged him close, swallowing past the lump in his throat. The two teens finally pulled away and shuffled for the boat, Toothless following a few steps behind. Sunset bent down and gently laid his saddle on a rock, smiling tearfully.

The teens docked the boat and set sail back for Berk. Astrid leaned against the mast, Hiccup and Sunset beside her. "There's something Mildew said last night that burns me up," Hiccup spoke, wanting to release some frustration. Astrid looked at him curiously. "Mildew said, 'See what happens when you leave your dragon to wait outside?' He _knew _Toothless wasn't with us before the armoury fire."

Astrid tilted her head, not understanding.

"Mildew lives on the other side of the island," Sunset continued, her eyes narrowed. "What was he doing in town so late at night? And how exactly did he know where we were before the fire?"

Astrid's eyes widened as she caught on to their train of thought. "You think Mildew set the fire in the armoury?"

"I think he did everything," Hiccup said firmly. "He did it all so that my dad would banish the dragons."

Astrid thought deeply for a moment before glancing at the duo. "That's a harsh accusation. You're going to need proof."

Sunset and Hiccup exchanged grim smiles. "Don't worry. We're on it."

...

When the boat docked Hiccup and Sunset ran off, not giving a word to anyone as to what they were doing. "He did say he wanted us to work on his roof," Sunset smirked as she and Hiccup climbed up the side of Mildew's house to get to the roof.

Hiccup hammered a nail through a piece of rope. "I'll go down and check the place out. You keep watch."

"Got it."

Hiccup climbed down the rope and landed in Mildew's house. He looked around carefully, searching for anything that could incriminate the man. His eyes landed on a peculiar shape hiding behind a curtain. He investigated, pulling the cloth aside to reveal a crude pair of Zippleback feet and a fake dragon claw. "Gotcha," Hiccup muttered, triumphant.

"Hiccup!" Sunset hissed through the hole. "Abort mission! Abort mission!"

Hiccup quickly wiggled up the rope just as the door rattled. Sunset hauled him onto the shingles and Hiccup wrenched the rope up just as the door opened. Mildew walked inside. "Hello, dearies!" He greeted the three pictures of his former wives. "Nothing to say, eh? Perfect."

He pulled aside the curtain, removing the dragon feet and claw from their hiding spot. "These certainly did the job, didn't they Fungus?" Mildew asked his pet sheep. "It's a shame all this hard work is about to be thrown away."

The man and his sheep left the house once more, carrying the incriminating evidence. Hiccup and Sunset crawled across the roof and watched Mildew as he shuffled to the edge of the cliff, tossing the desired objects over the edge. They landed in the water with a light splash. Mildew clapped his hands gleefully, under the belief that he had finally won.

Hiccup and Sunset glowered and glanced at each other seriously. It would be extremely difficult to convince anyone of this without solid proof, but they would do it.

They would do it for their friends. They would do it for their dragons. They would do it for Berk.

But most importantly, they would do it for Toothless.


	6. Meet Alvin the Treacherous

**I do not own Dragons: Riders of Berk. Direct quotes from the series are bolded.**

**Meet Alvin the Treacherous**

"Hiccup," Snotlout whined, kicking up a cloud of sand. "We've been here for hours and there's no sign of whatever we're looking for!"

Hiccup stared at his cousin in exasperation. "We've been here for exactly ten minutes and all you've done in that time is build _that._" The boy pointed at a crude structure of sticks and rocks, which was meant to resemble a house.

Snotlout crossed his arms. "_That _is Snotlout Manor. And all that's left is for me to find a queen." He glanced at Astrid suggestively and the blonde rolled her eyes.

The teens had gathered on the beach due to Hiccup and Sunset's insistence. The two had informed their friends of what they had seen and what they should be looking for. But there weren't having much luck.

"Guys," Fishlegs voiced hesitantly. "I hate to be negative but there's really a slim chance of us finding the evidence Mildew tossed into the water."

"Fishlegs is right," Astrid agreed. "Those fake dragon feet and dragon claw aren't just going to wash ashore."

"Look what I found!" Snotlout hollered, momentarily getting everyone's hopes up. But they immediately scowled in irritation when Snotlout cradled an old bludgeon to his chest. "You always remember your first weapon."

"Alright, keep searching." Sunset ordered. "We gotta keep faith, people."

"Can I borrow some of yours?" Tuffnut asked.

...

As the teens searched for the missing evidence, Gobber and Stoick were in the forge. The village leader watched as his friend pounded away at an axe before holding up the finished product. "Now there's only three hundred more to go."

"Can't you do that any faster?" Stoick asked in frustration.

"Weapon crafting is a fine art that takes time!" Gobber exclaimed, shelving the shiny axe. "If you're worried about being defenceless, you shouldn't have sent the dragons away."

"It had to be done," Stoick said firmly. "They're the reason we don't have an armoury."

Gobber snorted. "At least with dragons we could defend ourselves. It would be a bad time for Alvin the Treacherous to attack. You know how much he wants to take over Berk."

"I'm aware, Gobber." Stoick said irritably. His nose wrinkled in disgust. "The day Alvin the Treacherous takes Berk is the day I die."

...

Stoick's oldest and fiercest enemy was currently battling an attack from dragons. His marauders were being beaten back by the beasts, most of their catapults destroyed. Alvin growled in irritation and flipped an overturned catapult back into position, loading a boulder into it and releasing the lever. He grinned in satisfaction when his attack took down a Monstrous Nightmare.

"Alvin, we need to get inside!" His right-hand man, Savage, said frantically. "There are way too many of these beasts!"

Alvin glanced at two more approaching Nightmares before scowling and storming into the main building. Savage gratefully raced in after his leader and slammed the iron door shut, locking it firmly. "I've had it up to here with those monsters!" Alvin ranted as he stomped towards the stone table built around a roaring fire. "Is the ship ready to go?"

"It still needs a little more work," Savage admitted, knowing his boss would not be happy.

Alvin glowered. "I fail to see how that's my problem! We will sail for Berk immediately. Under the cover of night we'll land here," the man pointed the position out on a map stretched out in the middle of the table.

Savage glanced at Alvin curiously. "Why are we not taking the whole army?"

Alvin growled in annoyance. "We're not going to fight Stoick, we're going to kidnap the dragon conquerors."

"But I've heard the dragon conquerors have the strength of ten thousand men and are twenty feet tall!" Savage exclaimed.

Alvin grinned. "Well, that makes him easy to find. Ready the ships!" He ordered a few dozen of his men. "We have a couple of dragon conquerors to catch."

...

"We're serious!" Hiccup insisted, attempting to convince his father and Gobber of what he and Sunset had seen. "Mildew had a pair of Zippleback feet and a dragon claw hidden in his house!"

"He was using them to frame the dragons so that you would banish them!" Sunset added earnestly.

Stoick crossed his arms. "I'll ignore the fact you went snooping in Mildew's house. Where are these items?"

Hiccup rubbed the back of his neck and exchanged a helpless glance with Sunset. "Um...they're currently at the bottom of the sea-I think. Unless they washed ashore. Which would be fantastic. Doubtful, but fantastic."

"To accuse a man of high treason you need solid evidence," Stoick reminded the teens. Sunset and Hiccup sighed heavily before shuffling outside, needing to take a walk. Stoick watched them go with worry. "They're not going to do something stupid, are they?"

"It's Hiccup and Sunset. What do you think?" Gobber asked, equally as worried.

The two friends walked along the edge of the cliff, thinking deeply. "We're going to get them back," Hiccup said firmly. "We just need to convince everyone it was Mildew who set everything up."

"You heard your dad. We need solid evidence, not just words." Sunset sat down on the lip on the cliff, allowing her legs to dangle over the water. Hiccup sat beside her with a frustrated frown.

"I know! But how? If we don't think of something we'll never see the dragons again."

The two kids lapsed into a silence. Sunset gazed out upon the sea and frowned quizzically when she spotted a ship anchoring between two sea stacks, half-hidden from the people in the village. "Hiccup? Does that ship look suspicious to you?"

Hiccup removed a spyglass from his vest and held it up to his eye, squinting in the direction Sunset pointed in. "Um...that's not one of our ships. We better tell my dad. Let's go!"

The two teens jumped up and booked it back to Hiccup's house. Sunset glanced at the darkening sky and sighed nervously. "No armoury. And it's night-time. I do not like the looks of this situation so far."

As the teens went to warn Stoick of the suspicious ship, Alvin and his men were currently rowing to their docking point as darkness covered the island. Alvin jumped from the canoe and landed in the sand with a smirk. "It's always good to be back on the shores of Berk."

"Good for you, not so much for them." Savage chuckled wickedly.

"Alright boys, let's go find these dragon conquerors." Alvin instructed, setting off for the dark, quiet village.

...

As soon as Hiccup and Sunset had warned Stoick, the village leader had gathered every Viking in the Great Hall for their safety while they figured out a plan. The Vikings, however, were panicking over their current defenseless state. Stoick slammed a fist down on the table, silencing everyone. "If we panic, it makes us more vulnerable to the Outcasts." Stoick snapped.

A man burst through the door, startling everyone for only a moment. The Viking closed the door firmly behind him before reporting his findings to Stoick. "There are at least thirty men on the island. All are armed."

Gobber frowned. "We won't be able to fight them head-on without any weapons."

Mildew sneered. "No weapons and Outcasts about to overwhelm us. And it's all thanks to them!" Mildew pointed accusingly at Hiccup and Sunset, who were observing everything.

Stoick frowned. "Not now, Mildew. Mulch! Bucket! Bring the children and the others to Thor's Beach. You should all be safe in the caves."

"But we can help!" Astrid volunteered. "We've been trained for these situations!"

"Yeah, let us kick some butt!" Snotlout said eagerly, punching the air.

Stoick studied them for a moment before handing Astrid an axe. "This used to be Alvin's. Take it and go with the others, protect them."

Astrid gripped the axe in her hands and nodded firmly. "Will do. Come on, Snotlout."

The boy quickly followed his friend after the departing crowd. Hiccup and Sunset stepped forward. "Let us get the dragons, Dad." Hiccup pleaded. "They can help defend us."

Stoick glanced at the two for a long moment before slowly nodding. Relieved, Hiccup and Sunset raced for the door. "Be careful!" Stoick said softly. "Alvin is capable of terrible things. Stick together."

"Forever and for always," Hiccup and Sunset said in unison before rushing out into the night.

Stoick turned to the remaining Vikings. "The rest of us will guard the woods. No one knows the forest like we do."

"And if any Outcasts try to sneak by, we'll give them a big surprise!" Gobber grinned slyly.

"Alright people, let's move!" Stoick barked.

It was going to be a long and rough night.

...

Sunset and Hiccup raced towards the docks, intent of sailing off unnoticed. Their plan of stealth was immediately blocked when they spotted a small boat of Outcasts in the way of their ride. Hiccup and Sunset backed up and pressed against the cliff walls, tense. "Now what?" Sunset muttered.

"We retreat for now," Hiccup answered. The two teens raced back to the village, only to be walled in by two approaching groups of Outcasts. Hissing in frustration, Hiccup grabbed Sunset's arm and dragged her underneath a house. They sat absolutely still as they enemy passed by, their torches illuminating the ground beneath them. A soft whimpering caught their attention and, confused, they turned around.

"Geez!" Sunset yelped upon seeing Fishlegs cowering behind them. "Give a girl a little warning, Fishlegs."

The large boy swallowed thickly. "Alvin's looking for you two," he informed shakily. "He wants the dragon conquerors."

Startled, Hiccup and Sunset exchanged glances.

"Well, this changes the situation, doesn't it?" Sunset mused.

...

Alvin and Savage approached Stoick's home. The two were aware that Berk's armoury had been destroyed and were confident that the odds were in their favour. "I suppose I ought to knock," Alvin smirked. "But then again..."

He effortlessly knocked the door off of its hinges. "This is always more fun." He cackled. "Oh, Stoick! Come out and show your face!"

Silence.

"The coward must have turned and run," Alvin snorted.

"Sir!" An Outcast hurried up to Alvin, panting slightly. "Fresh tracks were spotted leading to the woods and there's a large man with a bucket on his head moving towards the beach."

"Time to split up," Alvin ordered. He stormed outside where a few of his men were waiting. "You four can go into the forest. The rest of us will go to the beach. How many hostages do you boys think two dragon conquerors are worth?"

The men laughed wickedly and set off in their given directions. Hiccup, Sunset and Fishlegs watched them from around a nearby house. "What are we going to do?" Fishlegs asked fearfully.

"Go to the woods and warn my father." Hiccup ordered. "Sunset and I will run ahead and warn Mulch and the others about Alvin. Let's move."

The kids split up, running as fast as they could. "I guess our plans are diverted, then?" Sunset asked as they jogged through the village.

"For now," Hiccup confirmed. "I just hope we make it in time."

...

Mulch led a group of children and Vikings through the twisting cliffs that led to the caves of Thor's Beach. The man surveyed the crowd to make sure everyone was accounted for only to find his partner missing. "Someone please tell me they've seen Bucket."

"He went back to get my Lamby," a little girl piped up.

"Oh, Thor's underpants! You!" He pointed at the first Viking man to enter his gaze. "Continue leading these people to safety. I'll be back."

Mulch hurried down the cliff-side and retraced his steps, jogging through the woods in an attempt to find his dim-witted friend. "Why is it always me looking after Bucket? Okay, sure, I volunteered, but still-oh boy, now I'm talking to myself."

A snapping twig caught his attention and Mulch whirled around. "Bucket!"

The man was standing in front of his friend, holding a stuffed toy gently over his shoulder. "Bucket, you had one job! Bring up the rear of the crowd!" Mulch scolded.

Bucket frowned sadly. "But the poor little girl wanted her Lamby. She was so sad, big blue eyes welling up with tears..."

Mulch sighed in surrender. "You may have a hard bucket but your heart is softer than mush. Come on, then."

The men started off but were quickly blocked by Alvin and his men. "Oh dear."

Hiccup and Sunset had just arrived when they were halted by Alvin's commanding voice. The teens backtracked and pressed against a tree trunk as Alvin led Bucket and Mulch away. "Too late," Sunset sighed. "Now what?"

Hiccup pressed his lips together. "That seems to be the question of the night."

...

Gobber and Stoick, on the other hand, were having a little more luck. Gobber effectively led three Outcasts into a trap, where Stoick and a Viking woman brought them down. "No weapons and we're still a force to be reckoned with," Gobber said cheerfully as he kicked aside a limp Outcast.

Stoick tensed as he heard rustling coming from below the cliffs they were perched on. "Move," he ordered, and his battle-mates immediately ran in different directions towards the sound. Stoick raced down a worn dirt path towards the speeding figure. He jumped off the ledge of the cliff and tackled an unsuspecting Fishlegs to the ground, fist poised for a beating.

"Wait, wait! It's me!" Fishlegs shrieked. "Fishlegs!"

Stoick immediately relinquished the boy, heart pounding. "Are you mad, Fishlegs? I was this close to killing you!"

"I'm glad you didn't," Fishlegs said feelingly as the two got to their feet.

"Why aren't you with the others?" Stoick demanded.

"I was out observing the nature of night when Alvin the Treacherous grabbed me." Fishlegs explained. "He said he's here for the dragon conquerors-Hiccup and Sunset."

Stoick stiffened, concern crossing his features. Hiccup and Sunset were alone, defenseless, and who-knows-where.

It wasn't a comforting thought.

...

Against their will, Mulch and Bucket led Alvin and his men towards the other Vikings near the caves. The men formed a steady circle around the hostages as Alvin addressed them. "Let it be known that I am Alvin the Treacherous-and there's a reason for it."

Tuffnut snorted. "What does a guy have to do to be deemed Alvin?" He muttered.

"Stoick has abandoned you-it doesn't surprise me. But you will not be harmed so long as you disclose the identity of the dragon conquerors."

Mildew, who was among the captive, brightened considerably. He sneered down at Astrid, who paled at the knowledge that Hiccup and Sunset were in danger. "Say goodbye to your little friends," he growled before waving his arm in the air. "Oh, Alvin!"

Astrid immediately backhanded Mildew in the nose, knocking him out. Alvin turned towards the source of the call and stared at the limp body. Astrid smiled innocently. "Sorry, my uncle tends to drop off at any moment."

Alvin shrugged and turned back to face the crowd. The moonlight illuminated his sinister features. "All you need to do is tell me who the dragon conquerors are and you will go free."

Snotlout grinned arrogantly. "Please. I'll show him what conquering is all about." He pulled out his bludgeoner and raced for Alvin, who turned around to glare at the boy. Snotlout paled, immediately dropping the weapon and retreating. "Never mind."

Astrid rolled her eyes and chucked her hatchet at Alvin's back. To her disbelief, he whirled around and caught it before it made a deadly impact. "Why, my old hatchet. How I've missed it." He sneered.

The blonde grunted as an Outcast shoved her over to their leader. The man glanced down at her. "Trying to kill Alvin the Treacherous eh? You're not as smart as you look, girlie." He studied the girl carefully, but Astrid kept her posture stiff and her gaze determined. "Why don't you tell me who these famous dragon conquerors are?"

No response.

Alvin yanked hard on the girl's braid, forcing her head back and causing Astrid to groan in pain. "Tell me who they are!" Alvin roared.

"STOP!"

Astrid stared in horror as Hiccup jumped out from behind a boulder, his gaze fierce. "Leave her alone," he repeated. "You want the dragon conqueror? You're looking at him."

Alvin snorted in disbelief. "Oh, please! Stoick's embarrassment of a son? The dragon conqueror?"

"I drove them all away from Berk." Hiccup confirmed. "You don't see any around, do you?"

Alvin narrowed his eyes. "Well then, it's been said there are _two _dragon conquerors."

Hiccup hesitated. But he didn't get a chance to make an excuse, as Sunset climbed from her hiding spot and stood beside Hiccup. "Right here," Sunset tilted her chin up.

When the man continued to eye the skinny, short children with disbelief, Hiccup gave Astrid a stern nod. Astrid swallowed. "They're telling the truth! They forced all the dragons off of Berk! They even conquered a Night Fury!"

Alvin dropped Astrid and went to tower over the two teens. Sunset and Hiccup glared back, not intimidated. "Alright then," Alvin spoke softly. "Prove it."

"In order for that to happen, you need to take us to Dragon Island." Hiccup declared.

Alvin sneered. "So be it. You three, ready the ship! We're going on a little field trip."

...

It was roughly an hour after Alvin had hustled Hiccup and Sunset away. The rest of the hostages could only stand stiffly, helplessly, as the Outcasts sneered at them. Just when they thought they would never escape, Stoick and Gobber ambushed the enemy. Gobber head-butted three guards in the stomach and Stoick tackled one, pinning him to the ground. "Where is Alvin?" He demanded ferociously.

The Outcast spit at him. Furious, Stoick raised his fist. Before he could land it squarely in the Outcast's face Astrid interjected, her brow creased with worry. "Alvin took Hiccup and Sunset!"

Stoick froze. "**What?!**" He exclaimed, horrified.

Astrid swallowed thickly. "They gave themselves up so that Alvin wouldn't harm us. He's taking them to Dragon Island!"

Stoick eyed the rising sun and frowned deeply. Alvin would only know about Dragon Island if someone told him about it.

What were those kids planning?

...

The Outcast ship sailed through the calm waters, following the directions Hiccup had given the helmsman. Two guards kept the teens at bay at the stern of the ship, but they needn't have bothered. Hiccup and Sunset weren't going anywhere.

Not now, at least.

"So," Alvin sneered as he stalked towards the teens. "I'm sure Stoick has told you all about his most feared enemy."

Hiccup glanced impassively back. "Hmm? Oh, you mean you. Yeah, no."

Alvin blinked, taken aback. "Not at all?"

"Not one word." Hiccup shrugged, fighting back a smirk.

"Not even a syllable," Sunset drawled.

"Let's switch to a topic that I actually care about." Hiccup pushed through the guards' spears and approached Alvin with Sunset flanking him. "If we do what you say then you'll let our tribe go in peace."

Alvin placed a hand over his heart. "On me word."

Sunset and Hiccup frowned distrustfully, but kept their mouths shut.

"Sir! Dragon Island dead ahead!" The helmsman cried. Alvin turned to see the rocky island against the rising sun. He smirked.

"Then it's nearly show time." He snapped his fingers and each guard grabbed an arm of the teens. The ship rumbled onto the sand and they all disembarked. "Now, where is this conquered Night Fury?"

"In the caves." Hiccup pointed. "That's where he normally cowers when we come to make sure their behaving."

"Move." Alvin poked Hiccup in the back with the hilt of his sword and they began moving. They came upon the cave and Alvin poked Hiccup in the back a little harder to get him moving.

Annoyed, Hiccup rubbed the sore spot now developing near his shoulder. "Is that really necessary?" He asked.

"Sir! Look!" An Outcast cried.

Alvin stared in disbelief as a black dragon leapt from the cave, crawling across the rocks towards them. Sunset made a subtle gesture with her hand and Toothless paused, eyeing them curiously. "That's a Night Fury!"

"Of course it is," Hiccup said. "We said we conquered one, didn't we?"

"He is the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself!" Sunset threw her arms out dramatically.

The Outcasts immediately lowered their bows with arrows, aiming them at Toothless. "Stop!" Sunset cried, forgetting the facade she was supposed to be putting on.

"Doing that will only make him angrier!" Hiccup covered up Sunset's slip-up hastily. "Just watch."

Alvin motioned for them to go forward, and they did. "I hope none of you are squeamish. We're about to see two squirts eaten by a dragon."

Sunset and Hiccup approached Toothless, who pounced on them happily. The Outcasts gasped, misinterpreting this as an attack. Unseen to the others, Toothless excitedly licked Hiccup and Sunset's faces. Hiccup chuckled softly and pushed Toothless off. "We missed you too, bud."

"But right now, we have a little acting to do." Sunset whispered as she and Hiccup got to their feet.

She and Hiccup shooed Toothless along, jumping around and pretending that they were avoiding any possible attacks. Toothless was happy to play along. "You cannot beat us! We are dragon conquerors!" Hiccup said grandiosely, slowly backing up to the spot where Sunset had placed their saddle.

The Outcasts were fooled by the performance. Sunset jumped to the side, causing Toothless to jump after her and his wings blocked the Outcast's view of Hiccup. The boy grabbed the saddle and hurriedly strapped it on as Sunset continued the performance. "You cannot tire us out! We're unstoppable!"

Alvin suddenly noticed the accessory Toothless was now sporting. "Hey!" He bellowed, pulling out his sword and storming forward. "What is the boy doing to the dragon?"

Hiccup mounted Toothless and pulled Sunset behind him. Sunset grinned and faced the shocked Alvin determinedly. "Yeah, you really ought to get your facts straight."

"We're not dragon conquerors." Hiccup said fearlessly. "We're dragon trainers!"

And they took off into the sky, flying above the stunned Outcasts. Shaken from his stupor, Alvin attempted to slash Toothless' underside, but missed. "Great Thor almighty! They _are _dragon conquerors!" He whispered as he watched the teens fly the Night Fury into the dense fog. "Fire the catapults!"

The Outcasts scrambled to obey, firing three boulders at the silhouette in the sky.

"Heads up!" Sunset hollered, bracing herself.

Toothless managed to avoid all the projectiles, but the sudden interference in their flight plan made it difficult for Hiccup to regain their bearings. "Shoot them down!" Alvin bellowed, noticing their issue.

Four sharp arrows whizzed towards Hiccup and Sunset, who were still battling to regain flight. "Hiccup!" Sunset cried as she spotted the arrows flying towards them.

_Phwosh!_

The arrows were obliterated by a blast of fire. Startled, Hiccup and Sunset glanced up to see Astrid and Stormfly coming to their rescue. "You have brilliant timing," Hiccup complimented as they managed to fall into flight with Astrid and Stormfly.

"Guys! Look out!"

Toothless and Stormfly quickly separated to dodge the incoming boulders. Hiccup and Sunset grinned when the rest of their friends flew in sync beside them. "The cavalry has arrived," Sunset laughed in relief and pointed to the Berk ship below.

"Shoot their catapults down!" Stoick boomed. "That'll give the dragons room to take out the ships!"

And so the Berk ship attacked. Alvin grunted as his boat was bombarded by enemy projectiles. "Get this thing offshore!" Alvin ordered, growing angry at the growing odds against his victory.

Hiccup noticed the Outcast men being distracted from their defense positions. "Move, guys! This is our chance!"

The dragons swarmed towards the ship. "Shoot one of 'em down!" Alvin snarled, completely fed up.

Savage dropped the oar he was using and quickly fired a boulder at the Deadly Nadder. Astrid's eyes widened in panic as the boulder sailed towards her. In a desperate attempt to avoid it, Stormfly twisted in the air, only to have Astrid lose her grip and fall onto the ship.

"No!" Hiccup cried, directing Toothless down to save her. "Hang on, Astrid!"

But before they could get to the blonde Alvin grabbed her by the arm. "Welcome aboard, missy! Fire!"

Toothless barely managed to avoid the arrows shot rapidly at them. Frantic, Hiccup flew towards the Berk ship. "Don't fire at them!" He called to his father and friends. "Alvin has Astrid!"

Snotlout misheard the boy and urged Hookfang to fire. A torrent of flames struck the water by the Outcast ship, creating a cloud of steam. "What's the matter with you?" Sunset demanded.

"But Hiccup said fire!" Snotlout exclaimed, confused.

"I said don't fire!" Hiccup snapped irritably.

"No, Hiccup! Snotlout is right." Stoick said firmly. "Keep firing!"

Baffled, Hiccup and Sunset scanned the area below. The steam from Hookfang's blast was still wrapping around the ship. Understanding overcame the two. "Got it!" Sunset called.

All of the dragons fired into the water, creating a steamy atmosphere around the ship. It soon became difficult to see. Alvin held Astrid close and glared around, tense. His men nervously held up their crossbows, unsure of where or even _if _to fire.

Toothless flew through the steam, making noises to put the Outcasts on edge.

It worked. "Fire!" Alvin cried. "Fire at everything!"

Arrows flew in random directions but none of them impacted.

Everyone froze when they heard a rumbling noise approach them. "Someone wanna tell me what that is?" Savage asked.

Frustrated beyond belief, Alvin threw an axe in the direction of the noise, only to have it imbed in the wooden object that was now crashing into them. The Outcasts yelled in panic as the ship jerked violently, tossing them into the water. Grinning, Astrid broke free of Alvin's grasp and kicked him sharply in the gut before making her way to the other side of the boat.

Toothless flew behind Alvin and knocked him to the deck before making a sharp turn. "Grab on, Astrid!" Hiccup hollered.

The blonde jumped from the side of the boat and hung on to Toothless' claws. "That's how we do it!" Sunset cheered.

Just as the four departed Stoick jumped aboard, landing a punch into Alvin's nose. "That was a coward's move, Alvin. Taking my son."

Alvin smiled mockingly. "But I always take what I want. You should know that by now."

"**Not this time**," Stoick growled and the two men brawled, punching and kicking and blocking. Despite his best effort, Stoick managed to throw a punch hard enough to make Alvin slump against the side of the ship. Stoick raised his chin and walked away. Using the strength he had left, Alvin picked up the iron anchor and swung it at Stoick.

The man ducked, and the anchor ended up imbedding into the stern of the ship. Stoick grabbed the rope and yanked Alvin forward, using it to tie up his wrists. After landing one more punch, Stoick hopped back on his own ship just as the stern snapped, causing Alvin to topple into the water.

Satisfied, Stoick bellowed, "**Burn the ship!**"

The teens were more than happy to obey.

The remaining Outcasts dove into the water as their ship caught on fire, flames rising high into the air.

Hiccup and Sunset high-fived as Toothless landed on the ship. Stoick and Gobber watched them with a mixture of relief and irritation. "What were you two thinking?"

Hiccup slung an arm around Sunset and Toothless. "We were thinking that together..."

"...and with Toothless..."

"We can accomplish anything," the two finished in unison, grinning.

Gobber and Stoick exchanged exasperated and proud looks. "I told you they would do something stupid," Gobber said as they sailed gently for home.

...

Alvin crawled onto the beach, slowly getting to his feet and watching the dragons fly away. He started to laugh manically. The other Outcasts eyed him uncertainly, unsure if he had gone insane.

"They can ride dragons," Alvin said gleefully, the possibilities beginning to form in his mind. "And if we get those two brats, _we'll _be able to ride dragons!"

Finally understanding, the Outcasts began to laugh evilly as well.

Hiccup and Sunset would soon be theirs.

...

The Vikings of Berk cheered happily when the ship docked and the dragons flew in. Everyone was safe, and that was all they wanted. They ran to greet the brave Vikings-all but Mildew, of course.

"Don't you remember what those beasts have done?" Mildew demanded, furious that all his hard work was being undone.

Stoick jumped from the ship and glared fiercely at Mildew. "They saved our lives-that's all I need."

Mildew bite back a dozen remarks, knowing that it would be pointless. Stoick pushed past him to check on the other villagers. Hiccup and Sunset approached Mildew, fire burning in their eyes. "We may not be able to prove what you've done," Sunset began.

"But we will never forget it." Hiccup promised. The two teens walked away, Toothless at their side. Mildew glanced after them quizzically, wondering just how they managed to figure everything out.

"It's amazing," Sunset mused as she and her best friends walked towards the village together, the sun warm on their backs. "That one attack from our greatest enemy changed everything."

"We wanted to prove that our dragons would never hurt us," Hiccup agreed. "And what we proved was that they will always protect us."

Sunset wrapped an arm around his shoulder with a happy grin. "Forever and for always."


	7. How Not To Train Your Dragon

**I do not own Dragons: Riders of Berk. Direct quotes from the series are bolded.**

**How **_**Not **_**To Train Your Dragon**

A thick morning fog curled around the island of Berk. Despite the dismal weather, all the Vikings were hard at work doing their daily routines-especially Stoick the Vast.

The village leader jumped from the battered ship and to the docks. He began to help the other men tow the boat in, making sure it was secured to the docks. After that was done, the other Vikings departed, leaving behind only Gobber and Stoick. "That's the second boat this week that rogue dragon has destroyed," Gobber observed, studying the wreck in front of him.

Stoick scowled. "And that's another catch of fish gone. If only we had gotten there sooner."

"You _could _have gotten their sooner." A voice piped up.

The two men turned to see their respective charges observing from the beginning of the wooden docks. Toothless, their ever-present dragon and friend, stood behind them. Hiccup eyed his father pointedly. "You know..."

Stoick rolled his eyes turned back to face the damaged ship. "And here we go," he muttered.

"If you had flown a dragon you would have reached the ship in five minutes instead of two hours." Hiccup informed his father. "You might have been able to scare the rogue dragon away for good."

"How many times do I have to tell you Hiccup?" Stoick demanded, whirling around to face his son. "I'm-"

"-the chief of Berk. As the chief of Berk, it is my duty to get things done the Viking way and not the dragon way." Hiccup and Sunset finished in unison.

Ignoring the dry look Stoick gave them, Sunset continued. "Sir, the 'Viking way'-"She emphasized the term with air quotations. "-is costing us a _lot _of fish and a _lot _of boats."

Stoick turned to Gobber for help but his friend just shrugged. "They've got a point, Stoick. Just think, if you had a dragon you could protect this island from Alvin and his dim-witted band of Outcasts."

"Exactly!" Hiccup exclaimed, moving down the dock and closer to his father. "You could-"

"That's a good point, Gobber." Stoick said, speaking over his son. "Alvin will certainly be back now that he knows we have dragons."

"And what if _you _were the one commanding them?" Gobber urged, illustrating all the possibilities.

The two men brushed past Hiccup and Sunset, continuing their conversation as they walked across the docks. Hiccup crossed his arms and glared after them in annoyance. "I haven't turned invisible or anything, right? You can see me?"

Sunset rocked back on her heels and glanced around the docks with mock-confusion. "Hey, Toothless? Have you seen where Hiccup went?"

"Oh, ha ha. Very funny." Hiccup rolled his eyes and hurried after his father. "Dad, I've been-"

"Gobber has made some good points, Hiccup. When do we start the flying lessons?" Stoick asked, staring at his son expectantly.

Hiccup threw his arms in the air, exasperated at being ignored. "Well, maybe we should ask Gobber, since he has so many good ideas."

Gobber shrugged. "Eh, doesn't matter. But I suppose sooner is better than later, yes?" The man winked at Hiccup, letting the boy know that his sarcasm had not gone over his head.

Sunset giggled and Hiccup sighed. "Alright. Sunset will take you to the Academy and I'll be right over. I have to make a few additions to the stirrup." Hiccup removed the saddle from Toothless and gave the puzzled Night Fury a pat on the muzzle. "I'll bring it back soon, bud."

"Hiccup is going to do his inventor thing and make some changes." Sunset scratched Toothless' head. "We are going to the Academy to teach Stoick how to fly."

Toothless snorted softly in understanding and waddled after Sunset and Stoick while Hiccup jogged to the forge.

The boy didn't want to leave his best friend alone with his father for _too _long.

...

"That was a record-breaking ten minutes," Sunset informed as she watched Hiccup adjust the new saddle and stirrup onto Toothless. The group was on a small section of land that towered over the dark blue sea and was attached to the Berk Dragon Academy.

"Well, I try. Dad, as soon as I have this all hooked up we can start." Hiccup assured him. "The new stirrup will allow you to control Toothless."

Stoick puffed his chest out. "Did you hear that? It's me who'll be controlling you."

"Uh, hold on, Dad." Hiccup got up and approached his father nervously, not liking how the lesson was starting out. "You have to show a dragon that he can trust you before you get on him."

"But I'm his chief! He already trusts me." Stoick pointed out, absolutely serious.

Sunset pressed a hand against her forehead. Hiccup blinked at his father before slowly saying, "Um, actually, it's a simple task. Give me your hand." Hiccup extended his own, slender hand towards his father.

Stoick eyed it warily. "I came here to fly, Hiccup. Not to hold hands."

Ignoring this, Hiccup snatched his father's meaty hand and extended it out to Toothless. "It's alright, bud." He assured his dragon, going to stand beside Sunset. Toothless eyed Stoick's waiting hand carefully for a moment before leaning forward and pressing his muzzle against Stoick's palm.

"Do you feel it?" Sunset asked eagerly.

Stoick coughed, clearing his throat and attempting to disregard the warm feeling in his stomach. "Yup, dry and scaly, as always," he said as he retracted his hand.

"Not at all what I meant." Sunset muttered.

"Can I get on now?" Stoick asked impatiently.

Despite his best effort, the smirk Hiccup gave his father was fake and sarcastic. He gestured towards Toothless' back dramatically. "Go right ahead."

"Let's get this madness over with," Stoick said gruffly, getting into the rider's position. Hiccup climbed on behind his father. Sunset hesitated, unsure if she wanted to partake in what would most likely be a failed flying lesson. Hiccup shot her a look that clearly said; _if you're going to make me do this thing alone I'm not going to talk to you for a month_.

With an apprehensive grimace Sunset got on behind her best friend. Satisfied, Hiccup began giving his father instructions. "Let's start out nice and slow. When you wanna take off, give Toothless a little nudge."

Stoick flat-out kicked the poor Night Fury.

Toothless took off like a rocket. Sunset grabbed her helmet to keep from falling in the water below and let out a startled shriek. Hiccup clung to his father and groaned. "I told you to nudge!"

"That was a nudge!" Stoick protested.

"That was so not a nudge!" Sunset hollered.

Toothless finished his ascent and hurtled back towards the ground. Hiccup paled when his father did not adjust the tailfin. "Um, just a reminder, Toothless' tail controls _everything_."

"I know," Stoick responded. And he did know. He just wasn't sure what position to move the tail in. Not that he would admit it, of course.

"We're kinda heading for that rock!" Sunset cried, pointing to a large, moss-covered rock that was soon to be their crash-landing spot.

"Well, I would do something about it if you weren't distracting me!" Stoick snapped.

Hiccup yelped as the rock loomed closer. "Let the-!"

"I know, I know! Let the tail out!" Now having something to go off of, Stoick jerked the pedal and the tail flared outwards. They flew over the rock, but now they were flying clumsily.

"Okay, turn left!" Hiccup ordered. But his father did not have the finesse with the pedal as he did and soon they were spinning in the air. "This is so not left!"

"Not my fault." Stoick called.

Sunset winced as the out-of-control Toothless crashed into the side of a sea stack. "Was that Toothless' fault too?" She demanded as they rebounded.

"Of course."

They plummeted towards the sea at an alarming speed. The wind tore at their bodies and Sunset groaned in fear. Hiccup gritted his teeth, using every bit of strength he had to stay calm. "You need to slow down, Dad!"

"I'm working on it!" Stoick fiddled with the pedal and finally found the proper position, causing Toothless to skim the waves instead of crashing into them. "Did you see that?"

"Not really. My eyes were closed." Hiccup admitted. "But I sure felt it." He peered over his father's shoulder to see how their flight path was. His eyes widened upon realizing that were coming in too hard to make a gentle landing. "Dad, we're going in too fast!"

"The tail's not opening!" Stoick snapped as the cliffs loomed closer.

Hiccup scowled as he felt his father bump against his leg repeatedly. "That's because my _leg isn't the pedal!_"

"Look out!" Sunset yelped.

They crashed to the ground, Toothless unable to gain any traction on the sand. The riders flew from his back and the Night Fury tumbled across the ground. Dazed, Toothless got to his paws and shook himself off. He wandered tiredly over to Hiccup, who was laying face first in the sand. Hiccup peered up at his dragon apologetically. "I am _really _sorry."

Sunset grunted and pushed herself to her feet. "That's it, I'm resigning." She muttered as she scanned the sand for her helmet. "There's gotta be some benefits for a retired dragon trainer."

Toothless cooed softly and picked up his girl's helmet. Sunset smiled gratefully and placed it over her tangled red hair. The Night Fury scowled softly when Stoick got to his feet, grunting heavily. "Alright, that's enough. I have a village to look after and I don't have time for this." Stoick ranted as he stormed off, only to discover that they were surrounded by high cliff walls. "...I need a ride home, Hiccup."

The boy rolled his eyes. "Sunset, you drive. My foot won't fit properly into the pedal."

Sunset nodded, knowing that although the new pedal was larger than her feet, she would be able to control it more than Hiccup. The saddle they normally used had a pedal to accommodate _both _of their feet-Sunset's booted foot and Hiccup's prosthetic. "Sure thing. Let's get going. I need a block of ice. My head is killing me."

Hiccup leaned in close to his best friend. "Take the scenic route."

"What, why?" Sunset asked, incredulous.

"I don't want him to give up yet!"

"You want to put him _back _on a dragon? Are you nuts?"

Hiccup glared. "Everything would go so much easier for my father if he accepted that dragons can be of help. You'll get that block of ice later. Now, we have some more work to do."

Sunset sighed in exasperation and climbed onto Toothless. Hiccup and Stoick sat behind her and the girl gave Toothless a gentle nudge, sending them soaring into the air. They flew over the island of Berk, shrouded by grey clouds. Stoick frowned. "This isn't the way home!"

"We're taking the scenic route," Hiccup informed his father. "Enjoy the ride!"

"It's hard to do that when my breakfast is making its way back into my throat!"

Sunset could not help but smile. She guided Toothless towards the village, knowing that Hiccup probably had something in mind.

"Your chiefing would be so much easier if you had a dragon to fly on!" Hiccup persuaded.

Stoick scowled. "I prefer to be-wait, what's going on in the grazing fields?"

Sunset brought Toothless closer so that they could get a better look. She frowned upon seeing a dozen tipped yaks. "Not cool," she muttered.

"Great. What genius has been yak tipping this time?" Stoick demanded, glaring at the scene.

Toothless spotted two familiar Vikings taking cover behind a stack of barrels. Smirking, Toothless let out a fire blast, causing the barrels to explode into dozens of splinters. Ruffnut and Tuffnut froze, hoping that if they stood still they would not be noticed.

Stoick rolled his eyes. "Of course. When is it ever anyone else? I WANT EVERY YAK BACK ON ITS FEET RIGHT NOW!" He ordered as they swooped past. He was able to catch two meek nods before the twins and the fields disappeared from view.

"I wonder what else we can get done today," Hiccup smiled. Sunset flew around the mountains, where they soon spotted a herd of wild boar chewing up their cabbage garden. "Fire, Toothless! But don't hit them!"

Toothless obeyed. The plasma blast struck the middle of the herd, causing the wild pigs to scatter in panic. "Do that again!" Stoick demanded.

"But the boars are gone," Hiccup said, puzzled.

"I know. I like the sound it makes."

"Alright, Toothless. Take us up!" Hiccup called. Sunset rolled her eyes as they sailed through the cloud cover.

"Oh, sure. When I backseat drive, it's annoying. But it's okay for you to do it."

Hiccup grinned. "Funny."

They broke through the cloud cover and came upon azure skies and fluffy pink clouds. Shooting stars rocketed above and Stoick looked around in amazement. They sailed gently down, where Berk was revealed in all its glory, illuminated by the golden setting sun. "Amazing," Stoick breathed, awed. "You know, I've swam in Berk's waters, explored its cliffs and caves, hiked through its forests, and been across every inch of it. But I've never seen it like this before."

"It's beautiful," Hiccup agreed, pleased that his father was beginning to see the benefits of having a dragon.

"It's much more than that, Hiccup. Look."

Hiccup followed his father's pointed figure curiously. All he could see was the empty village, everyone having already turned in for the night. Stoick elaborated. "All of my people are safe. It gives me a good feeling."

As they sailed against the pink and purple sky, Sunset and Hiccup exchanged soft smiles. Perhaps Stoick wasn't as hopeless as they believed after all.

...

The morning sun filtered through Hiccup's bedroom window, causing the boy to yawn and wake up. He blinked blearily and glanced at Toothless' stone bed. It was empty.

Concerned, Hiccup jumped from his bed. "Hey, Toothless!" He called. "Are you here, buddy?"

No response.

"Hmm," Hiccup mused as he jogged downstairs. "Maybe he went to see Sunset." He threw open the front door-only to see his father flying clumsily around the village on his Night Fury. Hiccup gaped as he watched his father smash into various rooftops, occasionally managing to get Toothless off of the ground.

"Gah!" Hiccup cried, flabbergasted. "I-I-I-I don't even know what to say right now."

"Hiccup, why did your father kidnap Toothless?"

Hiccup managed to tear his gaze away from the mildly disturbing sight before him. Sunset jogged up to her friend, her expression one of amusement and concern. "I really couldn't tell you," Hiccup answered.

Eventually, Stoick landed in the front yard. Toothless collapsed to the ground, exhausted. "Dad, what are you doing?" Hiccup exclaimed.

Stoick put his hands on his hips, feeling very pleased with himself. "Kicking butt and taking names!"

"No, no, I meant what are you doing on Toothless?" Hiccup clarified, although he was uncertain as to if he wanted to know the answer.

"Oh, we've been chiefing around the village. I don't think it's ever been that easy!" Stoick smiled at Toothless, who offered a small one back before curling up for a nap.

"Dad, Toothless is _our _dragon," Hiccup pointed out, gesturing between himself and Sunset. Stoick simply patted his son on the shoulder before strolling into the house.

"And you both picked a good one!" Stoick called as he rummaged around an old wooden chest. "I stopped by to pick up my hatchet, and then we're off to help Jorgenson break down a fence!"

"Okay, that's fine." Hiccup agreed. "But you need to understand that-"

"I don't need a hatchet!" Stoick exclaimed, slamming the door shut and coming back outside. "Toothless can just blast the fence apart!"

Toothless moaned softly but got to his paws. Stoick happily climbed on and Hiccup bent in front of his dragon, whispering, "Don't worry, bud. We'll fix this."

Toothless gave a tired nod before soaring into the sky with Stoick shouting in delight. The two teens watched them depart. "Uh-huh." Sunset drawled. "Teaching your dad to fly a dragon was a great idea."

Hiccup groaned and dropped to the grass in frustration. "How come whenever I try to help people it always goes wrong?"

"That's life," Sunset shrugged and sat beside her best friend. "So, how exactly are we going to fix this?"

"Er...can you get back to me on that one?" Hiccup asked.

Sunset grinned. "Sure. Listen, I gotta go to the grazing fields. Apparently two yaks won't stop fighting and Mulch wants me to solve the problem."

"I'll come with you." Hiccup stood up and grabbed Sunset's hand, hoisting the girl to her feet. "Maybe the walk will help jolt my brain."

"I think we're going to need more than a jolt to fix this problem," Sunset remarked as she and Hiccup set off.

...

That evening, Astrid found Sunset and Hiccup sitting on the steps leading to the Great Hall, peering at something below. Curious, the girl sat beside them and watched as Stoick landed a fatigued Toothless in the yard. Oblivious to the dragon's exhaustion, Stoick patted Toothless happily on the head. "Same time tomorrow, then?" He asked cheerfully before heading inside.

"That," Hiccup said flatly, gesturing to his miserable dragon below. "Is what it looks like to have been ridden by a four-hundred pound man all day."

Astrid tilted her head to the side. "Well, at least you got your dad on a dragon." She said optimistically.

Sunset snorted. "Now we need to figure out how to get him off."

The blonde rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Why not try the old 'honey and hatchet' technique?"

Hiccup and Sunset looked at her in confusion, unfamiliar with the phrase. Astrid suddenly punched Hiccup in the arm, catching the boy off guard. "That's the hatchet! And before you deliver the hatchet, you tell him something he wants to hear. That's the honey."

Hiccup rubbed his sore shoulder, amused. "How come all your suggestions involve weapons?"

Astrid only smiled brightly.

"Well then, we better deliver the honey and the hatchet before Stoick works Toothless to the bone." Sunset sighed and stood up. "Thanks for the suggestion, Astrid."

"Yeah, it really helps." Hiccup smiled at the girl before hurrying to catch up to the already departing Sunset.

"I'm giving the honey," Sunset said as they approached the Haddock household.

"How come you get to do the honey part?" Hiccup demanded, blocking her from entering the house.

"He's your dad." Sunset defended, crossing her arms. "You have to deliver the bad part."

"I _always _have to deliver the bad part," Hiccup said grumpily. He pushed open the front door and the two entered.

"**Toothless? Toothless?**"

The teens watched as Stoick came downstairs, calling Toothless' name. "Have you two seen Toothless?" Stoick asked.

Sunset and Hiccup glanced subtly to the rafters, where Toothless was cowering. He shot them a pleading look. "Er...I have no idea where Toothless is," Sunset said quickly. "But sir, you look _really _great today. Is that a new beard style?"

Not fooled, Stoick arched an eyebrow and glanced down at the teens. "Okay, that was the honey. What's the hatchet?"

Hiccup immediately got straight to the point. "Dad, Toothless is our dragon." He gestured possessively between the Night Fury, himself and Sunset. "You can't just keep taking him."

Stoick sighed heavily, but he accepted what his son was telling him. "That's fair. You'll just have to find me one."

Hiccup paused. "Wait, what?"

"Go find me a dragon that's as good as Toothless." Stoick requested. "It shouldn't be a hard task for the heads of Berk's dragon academy."

Sunset and Hiccup exchanged dismayed glances. It wasn't quite how they wanted the conversation to go. But at least they got their dragon back.

Now all they needed to do was find Stoick one.

...

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Sunset muttered.

It was morning, and after a long night of thinking Hiccup had come up with a solution to their current problem. Hiccup, Stoick and Sunset stood in the middle of the ring, surrounded by the rest of the riders and their dragons.

"It's going to be fine," Hiccup whispered back. He cleared his throat to catch everyone's attention. "At this dragon academy, all the finest dragon species on the island are represented."

"_But-_"Snotlout stepped forward, gesturing towards Hookfang. "-for men of our stature, the only acceptable option is the Monstrous Nightmare."

Intrigued, Stoick followed Snotlout over to the Monstrous Nightmare. The boy patted his dragon's chin affectionately before launching into his pitch. "On those cold winter nights, his whole body heats up just enough to keep you cozy."

Stoick mounted Hookfang, looking thoughtful. Believing that he had the chief almost convinced, Snotlout decided to give a demonstration. "Let me warm him up for you." Snotlout gently flicked Hookfang's horn, causing the dragon to glow red and glare at his rider in irritation.

Stoick frowned when he smelled smoke. Uncertain of what the odd sensation was, he finally matched the sensation with the smoke-his pants were on fire. Hollering in panic, Stoick jumped from the dragon and bolted for the water trough, smoke trailing behind him.

Snotlout grinned nervously. "Er...they come in a variety of colours?" He tried.

Stoick glared at him. He climbed from the water trough and turned to Astrid and Stormfly. The blonde smiled, ready to begin her pitch. "People think she's not tough just because she's beautiful. But you should never underestimate me." She smiled smugly for a second before realizing her mistake. "Uh, I mean her-us! You should never underestimate us," she corrected, flushing slightly.

Stoick studied Stormfly seriously. "She's a beauty, alright." He stepped forward and landed a heavy pat to Stormfly's nose. The dragon, startled, whipped around and shot spikes from her tail. All of them thankfully missed the chief, but only by inches. Astrid hastily calmed her dragon down.

Taking this opportunity, Snotlout piped up. "The Monstrous Nightmare isn't looking so bad now, is it?"

Stoick ignored the boy and glanced briefly at the twins. They were currently engaged in a fight with their Zippleback following their lead, biting at each other's necks. Stoick rolled his eyes impatiently and stormed over to Fishlegs and Meatlug, who were ready and waiting.

"What you really want in a dragon is loyalty. A dragon who's face will be the first thing you see in the morning and the last thing you see at night."

Meatlug cooed fondly, nudging against Fishlegs' arm. He stroked her lovingly. "She'll warm your bed when it's cold and be there when you're feeling down..."

"Odin help us," Sunset muttered when Fishlegs broke down, emotionally weeping into Meatlug's side.

"Sorry, Hiccup. But I haven't seen any dragon that can hold a candle to Toothless." Stoick said, glancing resignedly at his son.

"Yeah, well, neither have I!" Hiccup glared pointedly at his friends. Toothless sensed his frustration and bounded to his side in support. "But there's only one Night Fury, Dad. And he belongs to Sunset and I."

Before Stoick could respond, Gobber burst into the arena, panting heavily and gesturing madly. "Another boat is being attacked by the rogue dragon!" He cried.

"Let's move!" Stoick barked at Hiccup and Sunset.

Each of Stoick's and Sunset's feet reach Toothless' pedal at the same time (as Hiccup had never gotten around to switching the saddles). Slightly frustrated, Sunset stepped back, aware of the loss of control she and Hiccup held in the situation. "I don't know what got into me."

Stoick mounted Toothless with Hiccup and Sunset climbing behind him. "Hey, at least he blocks the wind," Sunset muttered to Hiccup, attempting to cheer him up.

Hiccup didn't respond. He just glared at his father's back as they soared into the sky.

...

The trio spotted the lone ship floating in the sea. A dark shape was circling it just below the water's surface. They watched in disbelief as a large, round dragon with a mouthful of teeth sprung from the water, roaring so loudly it tore apart the ship's sails.

"A Thunderdrum," Hiccup breathed. "The dragon that is said to get its power from Thor himself!"

"Fire a warning blast, Toothless!" Stoick ordered. Toothless shot a plasma blast, which just missed the dragon. The Thunderdrum flew off into the sun. For a moment, it seemed like it was retreating.

And then it came rocketing back. The dragon dove furiously towards the trio, its mouth prepared to emit another powerful blast. Toothless snorted and shot another plasma blast. The Thunderdrum was barely able to dodge it. The dragon pulled back and plunged into the water. Toothless landed on the boat and Stoick jumped off, granting the dragon some relief.

"We need to get everyone out of here!" Hiccup said urgently. "I think we scared the dragon off, but we don't know for sure."

"We'll escort you lads back to Berk." Stoick said firmly to Bucket and Mulch, who were the poor souls attacked by the creature. "You won't have-"

Suddenly, a thick, spiny tail shot out of the water and wrapped around Stoick. The man was pulled into the water before he could finish his sentence. Bucket peered over the boat edge, panicked. "We won't have what?" He called.

Hiccup ran forward in panic, clutching the edge of the boat and scanning the water with wide, fearful eyes. "**Dad!**" He cried desperately. A few bubbles drifted to the surface and that was it. Mulch placed a comforting hand on Hiccup's shoulder.

"Back up!" Sunset suddenly shouted, shoving her friends to the stern of the ship. Everyone watched in bafflement as Stoick and the blue beast shot from the water, landing on the deck of the ship. Stoick landed a punch that caused the dragon to go spinning across the deck.

"He's a fighter!" Stoick said cheerfully.

The Thunderdrum snarled and charged for another attack. He head-butted Stoick into a pile of nets. Getting an idea, Stoick grabbed a net and tossed it securely over the Thunderdrum's head. Stoick then used his body to keep his mouth firmly closed. "This is my dragon, Hiccup! Now all you and Sunset need to do is train him for me!"

Sunset and Hiccup gaped. Toothless warbled sympathetically and Bucket and Mulch gave the kids bemused looks.

"When I got out of bed this morning," Sunset finally spoke. "I didn't expect to train a Thunderdrum."

...

After putting a metal muzzle on the dragon and caging it, Sunset and Hiccup brought Stoick to the Academy. "Let's do this!" Stoick boomed, anxious to get started.

Hiccup peered through the bars of the cage. "Too bad I can't get a muzzle for him, huh?" He whispered.

"What did you say?" Stoick asked, frowning down at his son.

"Uh, nothing." Hiccup cleared his throat and spoke seriously. "Dad, you need to approach this dragon carefully. He's one of the most powerful dragons we've ever seen."

"Why do you think I picked him?" Stoick asked.

"You have to let this Thunderdrum know you're his friend," Hiccup continued, hoping his father would listen to him.

"You mean like me and Gobber?" Stoick asked thoughtfully.

"Exactly!" Sunset exclaimed. "What did you do when you met Gobber?"

Stoick grabbed Hiccup in a headlock and dug his knuckles into Hiccup's skull. "You one-legged lout, that's my wife you're talking too!"

"Er, not quite what I was hoping for." Sunset held back her laughter as Stoick released Hiccup, who rubbed his throat and gasped for air.

"Dad, listen. What's really important is that you have to show this dragon he can trust you. Make eye contact." Hiccup emphasized his point by gesturing between his eyes and Stoick's eyes with two fingers.

Stoick shrugged. "Alright, sure."

Apprehensive, Hiccup opened the cage. The dragon prowled into the arena, growling. Stoick lifted his chin in the air and held his ground. "Ssh, it's okay." Sunset soothed the agitated dragon.

"Dad, be gentle." Hiccup advised. "And you'll know a bond has been formed when he bows his head to let you climb on his back."

Stoick stepped forward and held out a hand. The Thunderdrum snarled and snapped at the outstretched fingers. Thankfully, the muzzle kept his mouth from doing any actual harm. Startled, Stoick studied his hand before scowling and punching the dragon so hard it tumbled back into the cage.

"What was that?" Sunset shrieked, horrified.

Stoick pointed accusingly at the dragon. "He tried to take my hand off!"

The Thunderdrum tore from the cage and sailed in the air, attempting to make a bid for freedom. Stoick grabbed his tail, preventing the dragon from flying away. Hiccup grabbed his hair in frustration. "This is not bonding!" He cried.

"You have to show these creatures whose boss," Stoick grunted, pulling on the tail. He threw the dragon against the ground, stunning him. Stoick cheerfully climbed on his back and faced the gobsmacked teens. "See? I'm on his back. Do you have any questions?"

The Thunderdrum recovered from the shock and took back off into the air. The teens watched as the dragon took off through the exit, Stoick still clinging to his back as the Thunderdrum climbed into the air. "This...went...eh." Sunset shrugged.

"I don't know what to do, Sun." Hiccup moaned. "My father does not listen to me!"

"Well, how about we forget about your father and the Thunderdrum for now?" Sunset suggested. "We still have to switch the saddle on Toothless."

"Yeah, that's a good idea. I left it in the forge."

The two headed for the forge, where they found Gobber tending to a Gronkle. Hiccup snagged the new saddle and paused, the desire to rant too overwhelming to ignore. "You know what the real problem is?" He exploded, beginning to pace. Sunset rolled her eyes and sat on the ground, patiently listening while Gobber continued his work. "Training that Thunderdrum isn't working because my dad doesn't listen! Every time I try to help him I'm just wasting my breath!"

"**I got it!**" Gobber suddenly cried from the Gronkle's mouth.

Hiccup smiled, relieved. "You understand! Why can't my father?"

"No, I was talking about this." Gobber held up a rotten dragon tooth. "What were you saying?"

Hiccup groaned in frustration. Sunset smiled slightly. "His father," she reminded her caretaker.

"Ah, yes-Stoick." Gobber removed the rope holding the Gronkle's jaw open and the dragon happily wandered off. "I'm going to tell you something about fathers and sons. It's the father's job to listen to his son without letting on he's heard a word."

Hiccup stared in disbelief. Sunset frowned. "Does that rule apply to caretakers and teenage girls? 'Cause it seems like you never listen to a word I say."

"I don't. And I'm not pretending, either." He grinned at Sunset's indigent expression.

"**Hiccup!**"

The boy turned to see his father lumbering towards them, dirty and scratched. Worried, Hiccup hurried over. "Dad, are you okay?" He asked, holding him up by the left side to give the man more support.

"Fine," Stoick said grumpily. "The beast threw me off and flew off to who-knows-where."

"Well, all you did was fight him!" Hiccup exclaimed.

Stoick grinned. "Nah, he loved it!"

"I don't think so," Sunset muttered.

"We can stand here arguing or we can go get my dragon!" Stoick said firmly. Hiccup sighed, defeated.

"Sun, go get the others. We're going on a dragon hunt," Hiccup muttered, clinging to his saddle (which would _again _have to wait to be fastened onto Toothless) and following after his father.

Sunset sighed. "Why do I let myself get involved in these situations?"

"You have no backbone," Gobber answered, smirking as his charge made an undecipherable noise and stormed off. "Ah, I do love messing with her."

...

The sky was turning an orangey-red by the time the dragon riders had taken to the sky. Stoick was once more controlling Toothless (much to the displeasure of the Night Fury's owners). "We're going to fan out and cover every inch of this island!" Stoick ordered.

"Ruff and Tuff, you take-"Hiccup began but was cut off by his father.

"Search the west side!" Stoick directed.

Tuffnut saluted the man. "You got it!"

"Can anyone see me back here?" Hiccup asked, annoyed as the twins and their Zippleback took off.

"I can," Sunset grinned.

"Snotlout, you search the north side!"

"On it!" Snotlout called and directed Hookfang in the desired direction.

"Alright, Fishlegs. We got east!" Astrid called to her friend.

Fishlegs groaned. "But Meatlug has allergies!"

Astrid rolled her eyes and the two turned around, heading east. Stoick watched them all go for a moment before turning to Hiccup and Sunset. "You two have an odd bunch of friends, but they certainly know what they're doing on those dragons." He said sincerely.

"Uh, thanks." Hiccup said, mystified. Sunset giggled softly and wrapped her arms around Hiccup's waist as Stoick flew Toothless south. As they flew through the skies, Hiccup decided to give his father a quick talk. "Dad, when you see the Thunderdrum again, it might be good to take a different approach. He obviously doesn't like being pushed around-"

Stoick suddenly spotted his dragon on a cliff. The Thunderdrum caught sight of the man and retreated into the wall-cave. "I found him!"

"And once again, my words mean nothing." Hiccup deadpanned.

They landed in front of the cave's mouth. As the trio dismounted the Thunderdrum charged from the cave, snarling madly. Toothless growled back, hackles rising. "It's okay," Sunset soothed.

"Yeah, just calm down." Hiccup smiled at the Night Fury, who calmed instantly at the gentle commands from his humans.

"I can handle this," Stoick said firmly. He removed a mace from behind his back and assumed a defensive stance.

"Oh, please don't!" Sunset begged.

Stoick glowered at the Thunderdrum before his attention was grabbed by a soft whimpering. Stoick peered into the wall-cave and spotted a purple Thunderdrum, its wing injured. "He's protecting his friend," Stoick said softly. "That's why he was taking the fish." He turned around to face Sunset and Hiccup. "You two find the others and tell Gobber to be ready."

Hiccup frowned in concern. "I can't just leave you here!" He protested.

"Leave!" Stoick ordered.

Knowing it was pointless to argue, Hiccup and Sunset mounted Toothless and flew off. Stoick turned back to face the growling Thunderdrum. "It's just us now, big guy." He tossed his weapon aside and slowly approached the Thunderdrum, hand outstretched. The Thunderdrum roared and glared.

"I want to help," Stoick assured the dragon, trying once more. The Thunderdrum roared again, but to something over his shoulder. Stoick glanced behind him to see several boars emerging from the forest, red eyes gleaming. "They smell the blood of your friend," Stoick whispered.

He grabbed his weapon just as the first boar attacked. Stoick let out a bellow and whacked it aside. More boars came towards him, snorting madly. Stoick continued striking the attacking boars, keeping as many as he could away from the wall-cave. When some strayed too close, the blue Thunderdrum would smack them away with his tail.

A boar caught Stoick off guard and tackled the man to the ground. It squealed menacingly as it attempted to attack, but Stoick held the animal away from his face. A tail swooped out and caught the boar across the face. Stoick glanced up to see the blue Thunderdrum hissing at more approaching boars. A new energy rose in his chest and Stoick let out a war-cry, fighting off boars like there was no tomorrow.

But more kept coming.

Stoick eyed the Thunderdrum and the dragon made eye contact. He extended his hand once more and the Thunderdrum closed the distance, giving his trust. An indescribable feeling overwhelmed Stoick and he ripped the metal muzzle off with one hand. The Thunderdrum lowered his head and Stoick leapt on, delighted.

They rose into the air. Stoick held up a fist, telling his new dragon to hold off the attack. When the boars came close enough he lowered his arm. The Thunderdrum unleashed a powerful blast that sent the boars flying wildly back into the forest. "Aw, look at the two of us!" Stoick beamed. "We've bonded!"

"What happened?"

Stoick glanced up as his son and his friends landed on the cliff. Hiccup and Sunset stared at Stoick and the Thunderdrum in disbelief. "Nothing much," Stoick said dismissively. "We fought some boars, did some bonding."

Sunset and Hiccup exchanged skeptical glances. "You did?"

"Of course. You know, there's something you ought to know about dragons. It all has to do with trust."

Hiccup stared at his father, pleasantly surprised. "You heard that?"

"I just said it, didn't I?" Stoick winked. "**I listen.**"

Hiccup beamed back.

Really, that was all he ever wanted.

...

They all flew back to Berk, with the injured Thunderdrum riding in a tarp that was carried by Toothless and the newly-named Thornado. They placed the purple Thunderdrum with Gobber, who winked at Hiccup before they flew away.

"You know, he's always going to do stuff the Viking way." Sunset said, observing Stoick as he flew in front of them, illuminated by the twilight sky.

Hiccup smiled fondly. "Yeah. But today, we showed him that the Viking way can also be the dragon way."


	8. Treasure Hunting

**I do not own Dragons: Riders of Berk. Direct quotes from the series are bolded.**

**Treasure Hunting**

The morning sun filtered through the cracks in the roof of the Great Hall, casting a warm glow on the wooden tables and anyone sitting at them. The hall was empty for the most part with the exception of four people-Hiccup and Stoick, who were posing for a portrait that was being painted by Bucket of all Vikings.

And then there was Sunset, who slouched at one of the tables in absolute boredom. The redhead thought wistfully of her bed and the blissful sleep she could currently be in. But no, she had to come and observe Hiccup and his father get their picture painted.

Well...she didn't _have _too. But the motto between her and Hiccup rang true-_Wherever you go, I go and wherever you go, I go._ And that 'wherever' included boring events like the one she was currently suffering through.

"Why did I agree to come and watch this?" Sunset muttered, her emerald eyes staring blankly at her best friend. Hiccup's eyes drifted in her direction and he offered an appreciative smile. Sunset managed a tired smirk in return.

"Eyes forward, Hiccup." Stoick instructed, not moving from his pose. "This painting will hang in the Great Hall for everyone to see. It has to be perfect."

Bucket was having the same train a thought. Frustrated, he placed his paint pallet on the stool beside him and marched over to the duo. He muttered to himself as he attempted to adjust the appearance and posture of the two Haddocks to fit his satisfaction.

"I can't work like this!" Bucket finally cried, running and slamming his head into one of the supporting poles. A metallic noise echoed through the empty hall as his bucket made impact with wood. The man swayed for a moment before smiling. "Better now!" He said cheerfully and went back to work.

"I don't think I've ever seen Bucket like this," Hiccup whispered to his father, bemused.

"Well, he became an artist when he lost half his brain." Stoick explained as Bucket blew more pain onto the shield/canvas.

Hiccup arched an eyebrow, skeptical. "So he really can paint?"

"Oh, he's one of the best. The only man for a job like this." Stoick said seriously. He gestured behind him, where portraits of past chiefs and their sons hung proudly. "Soon, we'll be joining them." He smiled fondly upon spying the portrait of him with his father. "That was a great day...and so is this!"

The two quickly resumed their positions when Bucket gave an annoyed grunt. Stoick cast a quick glance at Hiccup. "Chest out, Hiccup!"

Hiccup attempted to expand his chest by taking a gulp of air. He was able to hold it for a second before gasping for breath. "Yeah, no, this is as far out as it goes."

"Alright, then."

Bucket finished the portrait just before lunchtime. No one was allowed to see it until the unveiling the next day. Stoick gave his son a pat on the back before leaving to do his duties. Hiccup collapsed beside Sunset, who glanced at him with half-lidded eyes. "That was exciting."

Hiccup grinned. "I appreciate you coming to watch. I could just feel your support in the air around me."

"No, I think that was dust." Sunset smirked.

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Uh-huh. I'm gonna grab some food before the crowd comes in. You want some?"

"Please. No meat," Sunset reminded her friend as he got up to prepare some plates. By the time Hiccup had finished getting the food the doors to the Great Hall burst open and hungry Vikings filed in, chatting amongst themselves.

"Beat the mob," Hiccup cheered as he put two plates on the table. Sunset dragged her plate full of smoked salmon over to her. A few minutes later Snotlout, Astrid, Fishlegs and the twins joined them.

"Yum, yum. Chicken legs!" Snotlout said dramatically, waving the meat in front of Sunset's face. The redhead wrinkled her nose and shoved his hand away.

"Very funny," she snapped.

"Leave her alone, Snotlout." Astrid warned. The boy complied, a smirk on his face as he shoved the food into his mouth. "So, how was your guys' morning?"

"Boring," Sunset said flatly, stabbing a piece of fish with her fork.

"Sunset watched as my father and I got our portrait painted," Hiccup explained, popping a piece of chicken into his mouth. "It'll be unveiled tomorrow."

Astrid brightened and jumped from her seat, her plate of food forgotten. Curious, her friends followed as she hurried over to the other portraits hanging on the other side of the hall. "Seriously? You'll be hanging next to these great leaders tomorrow?"

Snotlout snickered. "**There goes the neighbourhood.**"

"You're part of a prestigious group now." Fishlegs informed Hiccup. "Plus, you're one of the few who wasn't killed by his successor."

"Yet," Tuffnut muttered to Ruffnut, who chuckled.

The importance of what would soon occur slowly overcame Hiccup. The boy rubbed the back of his neck as he studied the other portraits. "Yeah, I guess this is a pretty big deal. I'm going to be a part of history!"

"A history of dorks, maybe." Snotlout laughed as he gestured towards a portrait of Hamish the First.

Fishlegs frowned. "Hamish the First was our richest and most revered leader. Hamish the Second was just as cool."

Snotlout smirked and stood in front of the Hamish's portrait. "Oh, look at me, I'm Hamish the First!" Snotlout declared in a snooty voice. "Bow down and kiss my pointy shoes." He then struck an elegant pose.

The twins shared a devious look. Ruffnut got down on her hands and feet and pretended to kiss Snotlout's shoes. Tuffnut crawled behind the boy and Ruffnut suddenly got to her feet, giving Snotlout a shove in the process. Snotlout yelped as he tumbled over the crouched-down Tuffnut and struck the wall, sending the Hamish portrait toppling to the ground.

"You almost broke the Hamishes!" Fishlegs accused, picking the painting up and placing it gently on the wall. As he did so a small piece of paper fluttered from the back, drifting for the floor. Snotlout snatched it from the air before it could land.

"That's mine," Tuffnut declared quickly, in case the content of the paper was something cool.

Snotlout rolled his eyes and studied it. "It looks like a map with poetry."

Gobber, upon hearing the commotion from the teens, glanced up and found them studying a familiar piece of paper. Startled, he quickly got from his table and marched over to them. "**I'll take that**," he drawled, snatching the map from Snotlout's hands.

"That's mine!" Snotlout protested, straining to reach it.

Gobber kept it from the boy's grabby hands and shook his head. "I thought these were destroyed..."he mused to himself.

"What's the big deal about it?" Sunset asked, attempting to steal the paper back. Gobber easily held her back by placing his meaty hand on Sunset's helmet. The girl scowled and glared at her forced view-the floor.

"_This,_" Gobber stressed. "Is a treasure map that caused many a men to lose their limbs and minds."

"Hey, I've heard of this!" Fishlegs exclaimed. "It's the treasure of Hamish the First. His son buried it with him and left a map showing how to find it. Apparently the clues are so complex only a genius can figure them out."

"Stoick and I went after this treasure once," Gobber mused.

"What happened?" Hiccup asked eagerly.

"We went high into the mountains into a blinding snow storm and fought like mad over the meaning of the clues. We made it back with our lives and friendship , but it was a close call." Gobber folded up the map and gave the kids a pointed look. "If you know what's good for you, you'll forget you ever saw this." He relinquished his hold on Sunset (who stumbled a few feet due to the sudden loss of force) and left the Great Hall.

The twins, Snotlout and Fishlegs exchanged determined glances as Hiccup, Sunset and Astrid went back to their meals. "It's a good thing we don't know what's good for us," Snotlout grinned before he and the others followed after the trio.

...

"Hiccup, stop shaking!" Sunset whispered. The moment had arrived where the portrait of Hiccup and his father would be shown to all of Berk.

"I'm nervous," Hiccup whispered back.

"Here we go, son." Stoick said softly, clapping a hand on Hiccup's shoulder. "Our legacy is about to be revealed." He beamed proudly. Hiccup swallowed, nervous and excited.

Bucket dramatically swept the velvet cloth from the painting. The crowd ooh'd and aah'd. Hiccup gaped at the picture, horrified. The boy in the painting wasn't him at all-it was someone muscular and brawny. Hardly believing what he was seeing, Hiccup stepped forward to gape at the painting as Stoick bowed to the clapping crowd.

Hiccup turned to Bucket, who was beaming at his masterpiece. "Bucket, why do I..."He tried to choose his wording carefully so that he didn't offend the man. "...look like that?"

"Why is there a bucket on me head?" Bucket asked in turn. "Why is the grass green? The answers will never be known."

Sensing her friend's distress, Sunset slung an arm around his shoulders comfortingly. Stoick strode up with a mug of mead in one hand. The chief slapped Bucket on the back happily. "You did a fantastic job, Bucket! Right, Hiccup?"

Hiccup glanced at his father and then at the portrait. "That's not me."

"Of course it is!" Stoick exclaimed. "It's just...you with a little more muscle."

Mulch moved over to them, beaming at the painting. "That's what the son of a chief should like look!"

"See?" Stoick smiled and started shaking hands when more Vikings came to congratulate him. Hurt, Hiccup left the hall with Sunset and Astrid (who had suddenly been ditched by the rest of their friends) in tow.

"Of course my father likes that painting better than the real me," Hiccup said miserably as he stormed through the plaza with the girls following behind. "Our relationship may have improved a little bit but he _still _wishes I was a big, strong talking meathead. Even my name sets me back! You both know its Viking tradition to call the runt of the litter 'Hiccup'."

By an odd coincidence, a farmer Viking ushered a herd of sheep towards the grazing fields. The smallest sheep lagged behind and the Viking stopped to scoop it up. "Come along, Hiccup!" He glanced up and spotted the kids. "Hello, Hiccup!"

Hiccup waved half-heartedly back and the teens continued their walk. "Point proven."

"Hey, if I had gotten to name that litter of sheep that cutie would have been named Sir Von Puffyton," Sunset joked, attempting to cheer Hiccup up. Astrid burst into laughter and Hiccup just rolled his eyes, the tiniest of smiles forming on his face. "And if it makes you feel better, I would have been named Hiccup too if my mother hadn't gone against tradition. I'm under the belief she wanted matching names."

"What was your mother's name?" Astrid asked hesitantly, knowing nothing about Sunset's biological family.

"Dawn." Sunset replied. "Dawn, Sunset and Moonlight. I'm pretty sure if my mother stayed around long enough to have another kid it would have either been named Sunrise (for a girl) or Dusk (for a boy)." As she spoke her expression was calm and there were no signs of the girl holding ill-will towards her parents. It was something Astrid wasn't surprised by, as Sunset was simply the girl who did not believe hate got a person anywhere and didn't hold grudges.

In the blonde's opinion, Sunset was way too forgiving of people who didn't deserve it.

"But never mind my parent issues. Hiccup's are more important." Sunset said, bringing them all back on topic.

Hiccup sighed. "Gee, thanks. You'd think after the whole dragon thing my father would finally accept me. What do I have to do?"

"He does accept you, Hiccup." Astrid assured the boy, placing a hand on his shoulder. "He...just accepts the painting a little more."

"Not helping," Sunset said flatly. Her gaze drifted around the plaza and she suddenly spotted Fishlegs standing nervously in front of the forge. "Alright, is anyone else feeling suspicious?"

"The others left the hall pretty quickly." Astrid narrowed her eyes and the trio approached Fishlegs.

"Okay, what are you doing?" Hiccup crossed his arms expectantly.

Fishlegs swallowed nervously. "Er, nothing, really." He turned his head slightly towards the window and made a couple bird calls.

Not impressed, the trio started to walk around the forge. Panicked, Fishlegs began to make more desperate bird calls.

They came to the back of the building to see the twins standing guard by the back door. Hiccup put his hands on his hips. "What are you guys doing?"

His answer came in the form of Snotlout, who tumbled out the window holding the map Gobber had taken from them yesterday. The boy quickly got to his feet, glaring at them. "We are going after that treasure." He then turned to Fishlegs, who peering around the side of the forge. "And next time, you will be the one who steals whatever we want stolen."

Astrid scowled. "Gobber said that the bravest warriors in history have died trying to find that treasure."

"And I'll be next," Snotlout declared, jabbing his chest.

"I want to live to see my next birthday, so I'm staying here." Astrid said flatly, hoping that the others would understand the danger they would be putting themselves in.

"But we'll be legends!" Fishlegs exclaimed.

Exasperated, Astrid glared at him. "Yeah, and you'll be dead! Guys, not even Stoick could find that treasure!"

Hiccup stiffened as the words struck him. "Yeah...not even Stoick." He marched up to Snotlout and snatched the map from him. "Give me that."

"Thank you," Astrid sighed, relieved that he was helping prevent the others from killing themselves.

"So where do we start?"

"Wait, what?"

Hiccup glanced at the blonde excitedly, the map clutched in his hands. "Astrid, if I found this treasure, I'd be doing something Stoick the Vast couldn't do!" Here he gave a poor imitation of his father.

Astrid turned to Sunset, who was her last hope in helping the others see sense. To her dismay, the redhead also had a thoughtful expression on her face. "If we find the treasure, I could rub it in Gobber's face whenever he gets overly frustrating!" Sunset mused.

"Exactly!" Hiccup grinned. "We can show those two we have what it takes to do what Vikings do!"

Astrid sighed and wandered over to the group, peering at the map. "Well, where do we begin?"

"You're coming with us?" Hiccup asked hopefully.

"Talking you lot out of something is ten times more difficult than going along with you. Besides, at least if I come along I can prevent you from doing anything stupid. So let's get going."

They all scanned the map intently. "Okay, so it seems like map leads us to these places," Hiccup said, pointing at the crudely drawn pictures.

"And these riddles help us find these places," Fishlegs added, tracing the dotted line that ran across the map.

Snotlout rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Boring. What's the first clue?" He peered over Hiccup's shoulder and read the first riddle aloud. "**Where the land meets the sea, in the crook of the master's knee, that's where your search will be...gin.**" He scowled. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Ruffnut frowned. "It doesn't sound so great to me."

"Alright everyone, think." Tuffnut screwed his eyes shut. After a moment he opened them again with a puzzled expression. "Wait, what are we thinking about?"

Hiccup studied the map intently. "I think I've seen the master's knee before! Come on, guys."

Confused, they all followed Hiccup to the Great Hall, where they stood in front of the portraits. Hiccup pointed at the Hamishes. "Look, Hamish's knee bends to that spot on the beach."

The teens studied the odd rock stack that's Hamish's knee pointed to in the background of the painting."Well, we have our starting point." Sunset grinned. "Let's grab the dragons and head off!"

They had treasure to find.

...

The kids flew their dragons to the beach that faced the odd-looking rock stack. They landed in the sand so that Hiccup could properly read the map without having to worry about the wind blowing it away. "**From here you will see the seed that's been sown. Look to where water turns to bone.**"

Snotlout snorted. "Is Hamish even trying to make sense?"

"He doesn't mean it literally," Sunset explained patiently, believing she knew the answer. "He means when water turns to ice-or in his words, bone."

Hiccup perked up. "Sun, you're right! He must be talking about the glacier!"

The teens craned their necks upwards to the rock wall that had a glacier protruding from the side. The ice climbed to the very top of the cliff. Sunset sighed. "Gee, I wish I brought my winter coat."

...

"You didn't destroy the map when you had it?" Stoick demanded angrily. Gobber paced in front of him, his face creased with concern. The man had just informed Stoick of the missing map and who he suspected had taken it.

"I'm an idiot, I know. But I was hoping we could give it another crack."

"After last time?" Stoick asked incredulously.

Gobber shrugged. "All we lost was a few toes! We could have kept going."

Stoick sighed and got to his feet."We have to find the kids before they get themselves killed. Why would Hiccup do something like this?"

The man stormed from the hall. Gobber glanced at the recently painted portrait before shaking his head and lumbering after his friend.

...

The teens huddled in a massive ice cavern, staring in awe at the object encased in the ice. "Do you see that?" Astrid asked excitedly.

Fishlegs wrinkled his nose at the frozen Viking next to the object. "Yeah, and I bet that guy saw it too."

Sunset took the map from Hiccup and eagerly read off the next clue. "**Call on Magni, you'll go astray...Freya though, will show the way.**"

Snotlout brightened. "Oh, I got it!"

He crouched above the section of ice that held the trapped item. He slammed his head into the ice and it fractured. Hiccup and Sunset watched in disbelief as Snotlout continued rapping his head against the ice to free the item. Hiccup's eyes travelled upwards and he gasped upon seeing a spiky arm come loose from the ice wall above Snotlout. "Careful!" He shouted, panicked. Hiccup raced forwards and dragged Snotlout out of the way just as the weapon imbedded into the spot Snotlout's head had been.

"Breaking the ice isn't going to work," Sunset explained to the confused Snotlout. "Magni is the god of strength, and the riddle said if we called on Magni we'd be led astray."

"Freya is the goddess of fire," Hiccup continued as the answer struck him. "Which means...Toothless! We need some fire, bud."

Toothless bounded down from the ice ledge above, landing beside his humans. Hiccup gestured towards the item and the Night Fury unleashed white hot flames, melting the ice rapidly. Hiccup smiled and patted Toothless lovingly on the head before reaching for the item. "Ouch!" He yelped, snatching his fingers back as the scorching metal burnt his skin.

Sunset bent down and used her helmet to pick up the burning object. A sudden tremor shook the cave, causing everyone to tense up for a brief moment. It passed as quickly as it had come, but the teens had a feeling danger would soon approach.

Ruffnut and Tuffnut glanced over Hiccup's shoulder, unimpressed. "This is the treasure?" Ruffnut asked dubiously.

Hiccup and Sunset studied the odd metal shape with intrigue. "I don't think this is the treasure, but I believe it will lead us to it." Hiccup said confidently.

Eager, Tuffnut took the helmet from Sunset. "Lead us to the treasure," he demanded.

Astrid rolled her eyes. "Yeah, let me know if it answers."

The ground beneath them suddenly startled to rumble again, more violently this time. A gaping seam spilt across the ice, forcing the teens back. The fissures multiplied and grew larger, making the ground unstable. "Time to book it!" Sunset cried, clinging to Hiccup in panic.

"Agreed. Toothless, it's time to go!" Hiccup called.

Toothless came to their rescue and the other dragons swooped into the cave upon hearing their masters call. They managed to make it out of the cavern just as it started collapsing. "That was close," Sunset sighed, glancing at the glacier as it crumbled into shards. She removed the now-cool piece of metal and slipped it in her pocket, placing her beloved helmet onto her head.

"I have a feeling it won't be the only close one," Hiccup muttered as they flew someplace safe to read the next riddle.

...

Stoick patted his Thunderdrum, Thornado idly on the head as he observed Gobber appraise the sand, searching for clues. "Here are Night Fury prints," Gobber pointed. "And I'd say the kids were here..."He leaned in close and sniffed the sand. "Roughly an hour ago."

Stoick shook his head in disbelief. "I still don't understand how you do that. What exactly does an hour ago smell like?"

"It's less stronger than a half hour ago." Gobber shrugged, unsure how to answer his friend's question.

The two men jumped when a _boom _resounded through the area. They turned to see the glacier crumbling away. "They must have found something in the glacier," Stoick exclaimed.

Gobber slapped his thigh. "I knew it was there!"

Stoick put his hands on his hips and glared at his friend. "Oh really?" He challenged. "Then why did we spend a week digging in the sand?"

"Hey, that was your idea!" Gobber defended.

A sudden realization struck Stoick and bewilderment crossed his face. "Hiccup got further in one afternoon than we did in a month."

Gobber arched an eyebrow. "Yeah, it seems like tiny Hiccup has shown he's much better than us, two strong Vikings." He dramatically flexed his arm.

Stoick frowned, trying to read between the lines. "And that means...?"

"It's the painting," Gobber said plainly.

The village leader groaned as understanding washed over him. "I should have known," Stoick muttered, frustrated that he hadn't picked up on Hiccup's upset feelings earlier. "**He's trying to prove himself**."

The two men eyed the collapsing glacier, wondering uneasily just how close to death the kids had brushed.

...

The teens had landed on a tall peak that had a good view of the surrounding sea. Hiccup inspected the map for a moment before reading the next clue. "**At the edge of the world, amidst the raging sea, in the serpent's mouth, lies another key.**"

Tuffnut wrinkled his nose. "Ugh, serpents. I hate those things! They're reptiles, right?"

Ruffnut rolled her eyes. "You idiot. You're sitting on one!"

"Oh. Well, Barf and Belch are the cool, un-creepy reptiles." Tuffnut gave Belch a fond pat on the head.

"Hey!" Snotlout exclaimed, pointing at the sky. "That cloud looks like a serpent!"

"And soon it'll turn into a bunny," Astrid drawled. She glanced up at the fluffy white clouds with disinterest. Hiccup ran Snotlout's words over in his mind and read the riddle again.

"He's onto something!" Hiccup exclaimed. He held up the map and compared it to snake-shaped stone island out in the sea. He beamed, excited. "And it lies in the serpent's mouth! We have to go there! Come on, Toothless."

"Hold it!" Fishlegs exclaimed. "A Night Fury has a wingspan of forty-eight feet! You can't just expect him to hover in winds like these."

Hiccup mulled this over and decided that Fishlegs was right. "So...what's the wingspan of a Gronkle?"

Fishlegs stared. "Fifty feet."

Astrid grinned. "At least shoot for something believable, Fishlegs."

The large boy groaned. "Me and my big mouth."

...

After Hiccup and Sunset had flown to the village for some rope, Fishlegs found himself flying carefully towards the serpent-shaped stone island with Hiccup dangling on a rope below. Fishlegs attempted to keep Meatlug steady against the gusting wind, but it was difficult when all he could think about was the long drop between them and the water below. "Can't we just skip the treasure?" He moaned. "Isn't friendship treasure enough?"

They flew closer to the stone structure. Hiccup dangled near the mouth. But as much as he swung and stretched, he could not reach the piece nested inside. "It's too far away!"

"Okay, we gave it our best shot. Let's go back."

Hiccup glanced up in annoyance. "Not yet, Fishlegs." He climbed to the very end of the rope and tightened his grip. Meatlug flew a little closer to the mouth, allowing Hiccup to kick his legs around inside. The boy grunted as he used his prosthetic foot to lift up the piece. But as soon as it got on his foot it fell off. Not to be discouraged, Hiccup managed to kick the piece into the air and he caught it. "I got it, Fishlegs!" Hiccup called happily.

Fishlegs sighed with relief and guided Meatlug back to the peak. Hiccup beamed with pride and studied the newest key. He let go of the rope and climbed back on Toothless, who cooed in triumph. Sunset grinned. "**How's that for a Hiccup?**" She asked.

Hiccup grinned. "Alright guys, to the forest."

The teens flew their dragons to the forest below, landing on the ground and taking a break from flying. As their dragons walked along the forest floor, Hiccup managed to fit the two pieces together. Sunset studied them with curiosity. "It looks like there's only one piece left."

"That means we're on the right track." Hiccup said.

Ruffnut leaned against her dragon's head. "What are you going to do with your part of the treasure, Hiccup?"

"Oh, I'm not really here for that." Hiccup informed her.

"I call his share, then!" Snotlout dibbed.

"You don't have to do this, Hiccup." Astrid said softly.

"Try telling that to my dad." Hiccup muttered. Astrid hesitated, about to press the issue when she noticed Sunset give a slight shake of her head. Although worried, the blonde went silent. If Hiccup felt like he needed to do this then she wouldn't stop him.

They suddenly came upon a cluster of boulders that formed a wall. "Well, this looks out of place." Sunset mused.

"So that probably means this is the spot," Hiccup agreed. He studied the map. "**The world is right, when stars align; when not in sync, the danger you'll find.**"

Snotlout frowned anxiously. "I really don't want to stick around here until night."

"I don't think Hamish means actually stars," Hiccup assured the boy, scanning the wall intently.

"What do you think he means?" Astrid asked curiously.

Snotlout pouted and crossed his arms. "I might know."

The blonde arched an eyebrow and glanced at him knowingly. Snotlout scowled. "Well, I said _might_."

"Uh-huh," Astrid drawled and glanced at the map. Fishlegs got off of Meatlug and went to examine the wall, running his hands over the bricks.

"There's a shape carved into every one of these," he informed his friends.

They dismounted their dragons and joined him in his inspection. "Alright guys, look for a star," Hiccup instructed.

Snotlout instantly spotted one. "Got it!" He pulled the star-marked brick from its place, instantly causing rubble to fall down on him.

Aware that the wall would collapse completely if the brick wasn't back in place soon, Fishlegs yelped in panic. "Shove it back, shove it back!"

Snotlout attempted to do so, but the brick wouldn't budge. "Hookfang, a little help? _**Hookfang**__!_"

The Monstrous Nightmare was immediately pulled from his daydreaming to find his friend in danger. He quickly ran up and pressed the brick back into place, steadying the wall. Snotlout sighed with relief. Hiccup rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "The riddle says 'in sync', so there's probably another star somewhere."

Astrid scanned the wall and spotted the second star. "Right there!" She pointed.

"Ruff, Tuff, pull those two out at the same time." Hiccup instructed.

"Got it!" Ruffnut and Tuffnut mounted their Zippleback and approached the wall. Each head closed their mouth over a brick and pulled them out at the same time. The wall immediately split down the middle, pulling apart to reveal a dark cave.

"Uh...I don't think it's such a good idea to go inside a strange, unknown cave." Sunset said.

"Too late." Hiccup said as he and the others headed into the cave, their dragons following behind. As soon as they were all in the wall shut behind them, trapping them in the darkness. Toothless yelped and clawed at the wall, panicked at the thought of being trapped inside.

Sunset scratched his head comfortingly and shot Hiccup a dry look. "Told you so."

"Oh, the many times I've heard that line in my life," Hiccup muttered. He spotted a torch hanging on the wall and grabbed it. He held it out to Toothless and the Night Fury instantly lit it, bringing a small glow of light to the blackness.

They walked through the cave, Astrid grabbing another torch as they went. At the end of the path was a large room with a ring of small stone daises in the center. Each dais had a metal piece on it. "Oh, goody. I love guessing games." Sunset said sarcastically. "Let's all guess what will happen to us if we pick the wrong one."

"Is it just me, or is it really hot in here?" Snotlout asked, rubbing the sweat from his forehead.

"Boiling," Tuffnut agreed.

Astrid scanned the cave floor with wide eyes. "Uh, guys? Does anyone else see the floor moving?"

Hiccup held his torch closer to the ground. The small glow of light revealed that the floor was covered in miniature dragons that instantly scuttled away from the light. "Ooh. Er, Toothless? A little more light please."

Toothless complied, shooting a plasma blast into the air. The teens gasped upon seeing hundreds of tiny dragons covering the floor. Fishlegs swallowed nervously, sweat running down his face. "Those are Fireworm dragons!"

Curious, Tuffnut bent down to pick one up.

"Tuffnut, their skin burns hotter than the sun!" Hiccup warned.

"Aw, the sun can't be that hot." Tuffnut scoffed. He scooped a Fireworm into his hand. The little dragon flamed up, its entire body coated in flames. Tuffnut yelped and tossed the dragon to the ground, shaking his blistering hand. "Yeah, okay, the sun _is _that hot."

Disturbed by this, the other Fireworm dragons began to flare up and scurry around. Hiccup yelped in panic and pain as two climbed onto his leg. He kicked them off and Toothless shot a blast of fire, warding the little creatures off. The other dragons followed his tactic, protecting their humans from the Fireworms.

"Grab them all and let's get out of here!" Snotlout shouted, cowering behind Hookfang.

"It's a choice!" Hiccup informed. "**Something pure and something strong. Look first to yourself and you won't go wrong.**"

"Iron's strong," Fishlegs called. "Take the iron one!"

"But iron's not pure!" Astrid protested. "Take the gold one!" She started to get choked up and she took a deep breath. "Okay, it's getting really hard to breathe."

"That's what happens when you're being roasted alive!" Fishlegs cried. "A decision really needs to be made, here!"

"'**Look to yourself...**'"Hiccup whispered. He and Sunset exchanged glances. "The piece that gives off a reflection!" They chorused. The two teens hurried into the now-clear ring and grabbed the metal piece with the Celtic knot in the center. He and Sunset grabbed it at the same time, catching their reflections in the metal.

Their triumph was short lived, however.

The floor gave way, causing the teens to pitch into the darkness, rocks tumbling after them. Without hesitation Toothless dove after his friends, disappearing as well. Astrid screamed in panic and peered frantically into the deep pit. "What happened? Where did they go?" She cried, her voice thick with tears.

Rocks began falling dangerously close to the teens. The entire cave was caving in. "We gotta scram!" Tuffnut hollered.

"We can go through there!" Snotlout pointed towards a hole in the ceiling of the cave.

The teens climbed onto their dragons. Furious and frightened, Astrid latched onto Fishlegs, preventing him from mounting Meatlug. "We can't leave them!" She said desperately.

Despite the fear welling up in his chest, Fishlegs managed to speak calmly. "Astrid, if we don't get out of here, there won't be anyone to help Hiccup and Sunset."

He was right.

With a heavy heart Astrid climbed onto Stormfly and escaped through the hole with her friends.

...

"Well, I'm not doing that again." Sunset coughed, dust rising around them as Toothless unfurled his wings from the two teens. Hiccup glanced around, but the darkness prevented him from getting a good look at their surroundings.

"Can we have a little light, bud?" Hiccup asked.

Toothless obliged, shooting a fire blast at one of the rocks and causing the light to expand around the room. Sunset and Hiccup noticed a small hole in the center of the floor. "This is a very complex treasure hunt," Sunset mused, crouching beside Hiccup as he inspected it.

"Treasure hunts are never meant to be easy." Hiccup replied idly. He removed the metal pieces from his pocket and fit them all together. He then placed the key into the hole, where it fit perfectly. Together Sunset and Hiccup turned the key with anticipation.

The center of the floor (which contained the circular key) rose up into a pillar. The two teens glanced at the other end of the room as a part of the stone wall slid open, revealing another chamber. Toothless growled as the teens started towards it.

"I did not come this far just to turn back," Sunset told Toothless.

"Yeah, we've come this far." Hiccup smiled and the two continued on with Toothless following behind loyally.

"This better be worth it," Sunset grumbled. "I think I lost a few years of my life from that fall."

...

Outside, Fishlegs and Astrid were working frantically to remove the massive pile of rocks blocking the entrance to the cave. "Keep going, Fishlegs." Astrid said as she heaved another rock to the side. "We gotta find them!"

"**Find who?**"

The teens froze upon hearing the booming voice. Astrid and Fishlegs exchanged worried glances as Stoick and Gobber dismounted Thornado. A quick scan of the teens revealed to the two men that their worst nightmare had come true.

Hiccup and Sunset were missing, and from the scene before them, there was a good chance they were gone for good.

"_No!"_

...

Hiccup, Sunset and Toothless entered a chamber full of gold statues. Awed, they approached the stone dais in the middle of the room which held a scroll. Hiccup read the writing on the side of the scroll with Sunset peering over his shoulder. "**This treasure was passed from father to son. I leave it to you the next worthy one. For only a hiccup could get this far. From one to another, be proud of who you are!**"

Grinning, Hiccup uncurled the scroll, revealing a portrait of the Hamishes, except in this painting Hamish the Second was a lot smaller than in the portrait hanging in the Great Hall. "Hamish the Second was a hiccup just like me," Hiccup breathed. "He must have known only a hiccup could find this place."

"You did it, Hiccup!" Sunset cheered, squeezing her friend.

Hiccup hugged back, a little tighter than he normally would. "No, _we _did it. Thanks for sticking with me through all my...hiccup-ness."

"Forever and for always," Sunset confirmed with a smile. "Look at all this gold!"

Suddenly the stone dais sunk into the ground, catching the teens' attention. Sunset and Hiccup watched as two more pedestals rose up, one holding a feather and one holding a hammer. "Gee, this guy really liked pedestals." Sunset observed.

Hiccup glanced down and spotted an inscription carved into the floor."And riddles, as well. **In between the body and mind, a choice must be made on what you find. At this moment you must look to yourself, as only one path will give you true wealth.**"

Just as Hiccup finished reading the entrance to the room collapsed. Hiccup groaned. "Ah, you're killing me here, Hamish!"

Sunset glanced up as the roof began to cave in as well. "I don't know about you, but I'd like to see daylight a few more times in my life."

"Got it," Hiccup agreed and the two rushed for the same pedestal at the same time with Toothless following behind.

...

Stoick, Astrid, Fishlegs and Gobber were digging madly. Although they were making little progress they didn't stop. "Don't give up!" Stoick shouted as he chucked another rock aside. "My son's in there!"

The sound of cracking rocks caught their attention. Everyone watched in horror as the hillside collapsed in on itself. "**Hiccup**," Stoick breathed, terrified. They raced for the area and once the dust settled they could clearly see Sunset, Toothless and Hiccup (with feather in hand) smiling brightly at them. "Hiccup!" Stoick boomed and ran to his son. Hiccup beamed happily and hurried for his father.

"Dad!" Hiccup jumped into his arms and hugged him tightly. Stoick swung him around, overjoyed. "Okay, I kinda can't breathe right now."

"Hi, Gobber!" Sunset cheerfully ran into his outstretched arms.

"You," Gobber informed, holding her close. "Are going to kill me one day."

"Sorry. Life and death situations tend to find us." Sunset smiled sheepishly.

"We're so glad you're okay," Astrid exclaimed.

"What happened down there?" Fishlegs asked curiously.

"Did ya get the treasure?" Snotlout asked eagerly.

Sunset went over to Hiccup and together they unrolled the scroll, revealing the portrait. "This is who Hamish the Second really is."

Snotlout frowned, confused and disappointed. "But...that's not treasure."

"It is to a father," Stoick said. He knelt down and took Hiccup by the shoulders. "**I never meant to make you feel like you had to do something like this.**"

"I know," Hiccup replied. "But I had to do it for myself."

"And we did it!" Sunset threw her arms in the air, feeling very self-satisfied. Gobber shook his head and wrapped his large arm around her skinny shoulders.

"You certainly did," he agreed, his voice one of pride and bewilderment.

Hiccup and Stoick shared another hug, Hiccup holding on tightly and his father patting his back comfortingly.

Everything was fine once more.

...

The next day all of Berk gathered in the Great Hall to see the unveiling of the new portrait. Hiccup watched happily as Bucket took down the old portrait and replaced with the new one, which showed Hiccup in all his natural glory. Stoick put a hand on Hiccup's shoulder and the warm feeling in Hiccup's stomach only grew.

"You know what I learned?" Hiccup said, glancing at Sunset. His words caught the attention Stoick and Gobber, who looked at the two kids curiously.

Sunset grinned knowingly. "What did you learn, Hiccup?" She asked, playing along.

"I learned that being a hiccup is not so bad after all."

"Hiccup power!" Sunset cheered and high-fived her best friend.

Stoick and Gobber looked at their respective charges with fond amusement. Just when they thought they had finally figured the kids out, they pulled a 'hiccup' move.

And they wouldn't change that for anything in the world.


	9. Pretty Flowers Equals Sick Dragons

**I do not own Dragons: Riders of Berk. Direct quotes from the series are bolded.**

**Pretty Flowers Equals Sick Dragons**

Hiccup sat at his desk, the soft afternoon light casting a gentle glow on his notebook. The boy was currently sketching Toothless, who watched him curiously from his stone bed. Hiccup studied his work and smiled with pride. He dipped his quill into his inkpot, ready to make the final stroke only to find that he was out of ink. "Ah, man." He sighed. "I guess it's back to the old charcoal."

"Hey, Hiccup! You here?"

Hiccup grinned upon hearing his best friend. Toothless jumped up excitedly, wagging his tail. "Up here, Sun."

The redhead climbed the stairs, her emerald eyes bright with excitement. Toothless bounded over and licked her face in greeting. Sunset laughed and stroked his head lovingly. "Hiccup, Trader Johann is here!"

"No way!" Hiccup exclaimed. "He sure has perfect timing. I just ran out of ink."

"Then we better get going. Johann just docked his ship. You know how Berk Vikings are; we swarm the poor guy whenever he comes here."

Hiccup laughed as he, Sunset and Toothless jogged downstairs and out of the Haddock household. "Well, we are in the middle of nowhere."

The kids and their dragon ran down to the docks, where a large crowd of Vikings were already studying the merchandise, including their friends. Snotlout spun around the vast deck, his eyes alight with greed. "Okay, I can't make up my mind. So I want everything!"

Johann jumped onto the bow of his ship, his arms extended dramatically. "I have everything you can possibly imagine! Take a gander!"

Tuffnut inspected a bag closely. "Is this thing moving?"

Just as the question left his mouth spikes protruded from the bag. Tuffnut's eyes widened in awe. "Whoa!"

Gobber rummaged around a trunk and removed a set of bells. He shook them happily and the soft melodic sound caught Sunset's attention. "Oh, please no." She groaned. "I'm going to get sick of those things in a matter of days."

The man ignored his charge and turned towards Johann. "I'll trade her for these," he said mock-seriously, jabbing a thumb at the startled and stunned Sunset.

"Ah, Mr. Gobber. You could get so much more for a treasure like her," the trader responded smoothly.

"I like him." Sunset glared at her caretaker. "He's _nice_."

"Well then, the trade works out perfectly." Gobber grinned at Sunset's strangled noise of frustration. The redhead stuck her tongue out at him and stormed to stand beside Hiccup, who was browsing the merchandise for his ink. "Alright then, I guess you'll have to settle for this." Gobber removed a beautifully carved sword from his sheath and held it out to the man. "Oh, can I take those silk skivvies as well?" He asked, spotting the underwear.

"A fair deal my friend, a fair deal." Johann boomed and gave Gobber his purchases. Fishlegs then stepped up, a leather-bound book clutched in his hands.

"Is this your only book on the ship?" Fishlegs asked.

Johann nodded. "Aye. It was given to me by the author himself!"

Mind made up, Fishlegs held out a necklace. "It's made out of baby dragon's teeth. Will it be enough?"

"More than enough, Mr. Fishlegs." Johann assured the boy and took the piece of jewellery from the lad.

Hiccup was just about to give up when he finally spotted a small clay pot. Johann approached the boy and smiled. "That's pure squid ink! Taken from the colossal squid of the northern waters!"

"I don't know about you, but that just sold it for me." Sunset grinned.

Hiccup rummaged around his pocket and removed a spyglass. "Um...will this do? I made it myself."

"I know, you've given me five more just like it. But a man only has two eyes, sadly."

Hiccup placed the spyglass back in his pocket and searched for something else. "How about this winch? It can help you pull up your gangplank." Hiccup persuaded.

Johann smiled. He accepted the winch and pocketed it. "A perfect tool for a working man's ailing back."

Delighted, Hiccup held the ink close to him. A familiar grunting noise caught his attention and he turned to see his father trying out a sword. "Oh, because we _so _don't have enough of those." He drawled sarcastically.

Stoick shot him a glare. "I'll have you know that this is not for me. I'm heading off to my yearly meeting with the chief of Shivering Shores and the last man who showed up without a gift lost his head."

To emphasize his point Stoick slashed the head of one of the wooden carves. The village leader turned to Johann. "What will you take in trade for this sword?"

"All I desire is your good graces when my amble ship passes through Berk," Johann replied smoothly.

Stoick smiled. "You will always be welcome here, Johann." He departed the ship and mounted Thornado, who was waiting patiently on the docks. Hiccup and Sunset leaned against the wooden rails of the ship. "I'll be back in two days, Hiccup. Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone."

"I'll try," Hiccup smirked. "But I don't make any promises."

Stoick shook his head and took off into the sky.

"Trader Johann!"

The teens grimaced upon hearing the voice of the village grump, Mildew. Johann opened his arms in greeting. "Ah, Mildew! You are well, I hope?"

"Did you bring what I asked for?" Mildew snapped, not one to get caught up in pleasantries.

"You're always straight to the point. It's right here!" He lifted the lid off of a woven basket and Mildew peered inside. "Do you have my cabbage?"

Mildew shoved a basket full of cabbage over to Johann, who beamed and placed it on top of his other earnings. "I shall bring it to your house before I depart."

Mildew nodded shortly, glared at Hiccup and Sunset and departed. A Terrible Terror scurried onto Mildew's purchases and chewed on the basket. Johann hurried over and wagged a finger in front of the dragon. "No, no, that's not for you."

The tiny dragon bit the man's finger. Johann winced and shook the dragon off, flinging the poor thing across the deck. Toothless snarled and lunged at Johann, knocking into Hiccup and causing the boy to drop the pot of ink to the ground. Sunset quickly stepped between Johann and the growling Toothless, pushing the Night Fury back. "Sorry, Johann. Toothless is just protective."

Hiccup sighed and picked up the black-stained pieces of the clay pot. "It's all gone."

"Sorry, boy, that was the only bottle I had." Johann said sincerely. "But I'll be sure to wrestle another colossal squid and get you another one."

"That's customer service right there," Sunset joked and gave the shaken Terrible Terror a pat on the head before urging it to fly off, which it did.

Hiccup shook his head and gave Toothless a look. The Night Fury cooed apologetically. "Now, now, there's no point crying over spilled ink." Sunset said sternly. "Come on, let's get to the academy. The others left a while ago and are probably waiting for us. Bye, Johann!"

"See you soon, Johann!" The two kids waved and took off for the academy with Toothless hot on their heels.

"Nice kids," Johann mused as he grabbed Mildew's purchases. "Feisty dragon, though."

...

"I'm not sure if I want to know but where's Ruffnut and Tuffnut?" Hiccup asked, glancing around at his friends. He and Sunset had arrived at the arena to discover that the twins had yet to show up.

"Right here!"

Everyone turned to see the twins arrive on their Zippleback, who was carrying a large stone carving of a Viking. Barf and Belch set the statue down and the twins hopped off. Everyone watched in surprise as the twins shoved the statue into the center of the ring. "How does it look?" Tuffnut asked.

"It's perfect." Ruffnut grinned.

Hiccup was impressed. "You guys got this just for the academy?"

"We had to give Trader Johann our great-grandfather's skull, but he let us keep the clavicle." Tuffnut informed him.

"It's great that you guys are taking pride in this place!" Hiccup exclaimed, inspecting the statue.

Tuffnut smirked. "Uh-huh. You might wanna duck."

Hiccup turned in time to catch Barf and Belch preparing to shoot a fireball. Tuffnut and Hiccup just managed to dive to safety before being burned by the blast, which nailed the statue. Snotlout grinned widely and mounted Hookfang. "That was so cool! I wanna try! Fire, Hookfang!"

The Monstrous Nightmare let loose with a fireball, which struck the stone target. Eager, Stormfly unleashed a series of spikes and Meatlug shot her own fire blast. Wanting a turn, Toothless was about to shoot a plasma blast but he sneezed in the process, causing the attack to go off course and narrowly miss Snotlout.

"Haven't you taught your dragon to cover his mouth when he sneezes?" Snotlout asked in annoyance.

"We've never had a reason to," Sunset frowned as she and Hiccup checked on Toothless worriedly. Toothless looked up at them with doe eyes before sneezing again.

"I think we're going to have to call it for today," Hiccup said, mounting Toothless with Sunset getting on behind him.

"Me too," Astrid agreed. She climbed onto Stormfly and the teens flew from the arena, leaving their friends to continue target practice.

"Wow," Astrid exclaimed as they flew above the plaza. Dozens and dozens of pretty light blue flowers were growing in the plaza. "They're so pretty!"

Toothless let out a violent sneeze, causing him to fly off course and nearly crash into Astrid. "Sorry!" Sunset hollered. Toothless sneezed some more, making flight impossible.

"Oh, here we go." Hiccup moaned as they sailed for the ground. He crashed head-first, sending Hiccup and Sunset flying off.

"Hey, bud!" Hiccup quickly got to his feet and hurried over to the weak dragon. "Are you sick or something?"

Sunset rubbed the Night Fury's head comfortingly. "Can a dragon catch a cold?"

The Terrible Terror from Johann's boat wobbled in the air. It let out a sneeze and crashed by their feet, sniffling madly. Sunset scooped the Terror up and cradled it in her arms. Astrid frowned in concern. "Well, whatever it is, that little guy has it to."

"Hey, Sun? Can you get Gobber?" Hiccup asked, scratching Toothless' chin. "Maybe he'll know what to do."

"Sure thing." Sunset raced for Gobber's forge/dragon dentist shop. She found her caretaker cleaning the place up, a pile of rotten dragon teeth on the wooden worktable. "Hey, Gobber."

The man glanced up. "No." He said before going back to work.

"I didn't even say anything!" Sunset protested.

Gobber sighed and straightened up, tossing an old cloth he was using to wipe the table down aside. "You have a sick-looking Terrible Terror in your arms. I can only assume this means that you want to take it in and the answer to that is _no_."

"You know what they say about people who assume," Sunset said flatly. "I came here to ask if you knew any remedies that would help sick dragons. Toothless and this little guy aren't doing so well."

"I may know something," Gobber said thoughtfully. "But you'll have to give me a few minutes to get the ingredients ready."

"We'll be at Hiccup's house," Sunset informed him with a smile. "You're the best Gobber."

"Why can't you say that more often?"

Sunset grinned cheekily. "You're only great once in a while." She took off before Gobber could respond with a snappy retort.

"Little brat," Gobber muttered before lumbering off to gather what he needed.

...

Sunset arrived at the Haddock household to see Hiccup petting Toothless by the fire. "Where's Astrid?"

"She left to see if any other dragons were sick." Hiccup answered. Sunset sat beside her friend and cuddled the Terrible Terror in her lap. The little dragon curled up and whimpered softly before closing its eyes.

"You are a male dragon," Sunset mused. "And therefore your name shall be...Shortie."

"Gobber's not going to let you keep him," Hiccup warned.

"He doesn't let me keep the farm animals either. And I still name them, don't I?"

Hiccup shook his head and leaned against Toothless. "So, is Gobber coming?"

"Yeah. He just has to get some ingredients first. I guess he knows of a remedy that might help."

The teens lapsed into a silence. They stroked and cuddled the sick dragons as they waited for Gobber. After twenty minutes the man showed up carrying a pot that smelled rather nasty. "I'm having second thoughts about this," Sunset muttered as Gobber placed the pot over the fire.

"It'll fix those dragons right up." Gobber assured them, stirring the liquid. Sunset peered over his shoulder and gagged, backing away.

"It's _green_!" She exclaimed.

"And it's good for you." Gobber returned.

"What exactly is it?" Hiccup asked incredulously.

"Eh, I wouldn't ask that if I were you." Gobber said idly. He gave the liquid a few more stirs until he was satisfied that it was hot enough. He took the pot off the fire with his hook and set it in front of Toothless. The Night Fury sniffed it and let out a sneeze, causing the pot to topple over and splatter green gunk over Gobber's shirt.

The man wrinkled his nose. "Well, that's not going to work. It took me forever to get that stubborn yak to vomit."

"_Gobber!" _Sunset cried, horrified.

The door suddenly burst open. Astrid stuck her head in, a worried expression on her face. "You need to see this!" She exclaimed.

The teens raced outside to find that the other dragons were flying clumsily in the air, sneezing violently. Their riders shouted in panic as they twisted and tumbled in the air. "Do something," Fishlegs shouted as he spun by on Meatlug. "They're all sick!"

"Okay, it's spreading!" Hiccup yanked on his hair in panic. He turned to Gobber, who had come to observe from the front stoop. "Gobber, what do we do?"

"Gothi might know," Gobber suggested.

"Yes! Good! Go get her."

"Why do I-?"

"Just _go _Gobber!" Astrid, Hiccup and Sunset snapped.

Annoyed, Gobber headed off. "When you're being ordered around by teens, does that mean you've hit a low point in your life?" He muttered to himself.

...

Roughly an hour later Gobber returned with Gothi. The village elder set about inspecting Toothless, checking his eyes and mouth. Thoughtful, Gothi took a handful of bones, gave them a shake and tossed them to the floor. She studied the formation they had landed in while the others observed with wide eyes.

"I heard she knows when you're gonna die just by looking at your fingernails," Astrid whispered. Fishlegs shoved his hands behind his back.

"No, no. It's the tongue she looks that," Gobber corrected. Fishlegs slapped his hands over his mouth, eyes wide with fear. Gobber wandered over to Gothi, who was now writing in the ashes by the fire pit. "Gothi says the dragons are reacting to something, like an allergy."

Hiccup tilted his head to the side, confused. "What are they allergic to?"

Gothi continued writing. "They are allergic to a moose wearing boots. Well, that'll be easy to find."

The village elder shook her head and whacked Gobber with her staff. "Er, maybe that wasn't right." Gobber grinned sheepishly. He studied the writing and the pictures for a moment before trying again. "They're allergic to something new that just came to the island. Okay, that island so looks like a moose."

Gothi rolled her eyes and whacked him again.

"But everyone bought something from Trader Johann," Sunset said worriedly.

"Gothi says we need to rid of it all immediately. If we don't, the dragons are just going to get sicker."

Hiccup and Sunset wrapped their arms around Toothless, devastated. Shortie gave a soft coo and Sunset stroked his head. "We won't let that happen," she said determinedly.

"Tonight, we're going to tell everyone what the problem is." Hiccup said firmly. "Tomorrow at dawn, we throw everything into the huge pit by the beach."

And Hiccup and Sunset would make sure of it.

...

Thankfully, all the Vikings were sympathetic to the dragon's plight. No one wanted the dragons to suffer and so a long line stretched from the deep pit on the beach. One by one the Vikings tossed their new possessions into the hole. Hiccup and Sunset supervised the procedure. "I know this is difficult, but you're doing a good thing!" Hiccup assured them all.

"Thank you for understanding," Sunset added.

Snotlout stepped forward. He cast one long look into his mirror before sighing and tossing it away. He would never admit it, but nothing Trader Johann had was worth anything _close _to Hookfang.

Fishlegs leafed frantically through the last chapter of his book. Frustrated, Ruffnut leaned over his shoulder. "What are you waiting for? Toss it in!"

"I need to know how this ends!" Fishlegs insisted, skimming the pages. Annoyed, Ruffnut plucked the book from his hands and tossed it into the pit. She shot a smug grin at Fishlegs, who watched in agony.

Sunset turned to Gobber, who was watching the procedure with a lazy expression on his face. "Alright, toss it in."

"I already did," Gobber answered. "You saw me throw those bells in there. You even cheered."

Sunset crossed her arms and glared. "You got _two _things from Trader Johann. Where's the silk?"

"I'm currently using it as my skivvies." Gobber held Sunset's glare for a moment before giving in. "Oh, alright." He went behind a rock and a second later purple shorts flew over the rock and into the pit. Sunset slapped a hand over her eyes in mortification as Gobber emerged, adjusting his pants glumly.

"That was not something I needed to see," Hiccup muttered.

Eventually all the new objects were tossed into the pit, far away from the village and the dragons. Hiccup and Sunset walked to Hiccup's home, where Toothless was sleeping on his stone slab. "They still don't look so good," Sunset commented, petting Shortie, who was shivering violently.

"We can't expect them to get better in a second," Hiccup said optimistically. "I'm sure they'll be better by tomorrow."

...

By the following morning, they were getting worse.

Sunset cradled a whimpering, shivering Terrible Terror in her arms. The Viking teens were gathered atin town to figure out what to do next. Hiccup had left Toothless at home, as the Night Fury was too weak to go anywhere. "He didn't even feel like flying," Hiccup said miserably.

"All of our dragons are getting worse." Fishlegs stared sadly at the agonized dragons that were slumped beside their owners. "I don't understand."

"There has to be someone who didn't throw out something they got from Trader Johann." Sunset voiced.

"That's the only possible reason," Hiccup agreed with frown. "We should make a list and see who didn't get rid of something."

"And when I find out who it is, I'm gonna punch the lights outta them!" Snotlout punched the air furiously. "I spent all night cleaning dragon barf from our walls."

"You think that's bad?" Tuffnut asked, staring sadly at his immobile Zippleback. "Ours died."

Astrid gasped, slapping a hand over her mouth. Snotlout gaped in shock and Hiccup and Sunset blinked, the awfulness of what Tuffnut just said stunning them. Ruffnut managed a weary grin. "Actually, he's alive. But he ain't looking so good."

Relief coursed through the teens but before they could snap at the twins for playing such a terrible prank a shriek tore through the air. The teens glanced over their shoulders to see Stoick and Thornado landing in the Haddock's front yard. "Hiccup, I got something for you to add to the Dragon Book!" He boomed as he advanced towards the teens. "Never fly on a dragon with a stomach full of undercooked mutton. Those Shivering Shores will never be the same."

When he got close he noticed the disheartened looks on their faces and that the dragons were not moving a muscle. Concerned, he turned to Hiccup. "What's wrong, Hiccup?"

"The dragons are sick, Dad. And they're getting worse." Hiccup said, distressed. "And we don't know how to help them."

Startled, Stoick looked around his village. "_**Every **_**dragon?**"

"Every dragon," Sunset confirmed sadly, holding Shortie close.

Stoick frowned, troubled.

Suffice to say, it wasn't the homecoming he had expected.

...

Night fell and the teens were no closer to figuring out who had kept something from Johann. Stoick urged the teens to go home.

Hiccup stumbled into the house to find Toothless curled up by the fire. "He's cold," Hiccup whispered, quickly grabbing a blanket and draping it over his friend. "Oh, Dad, I don't know what to do."

Stoick tossed another log into the fire and crouched down beside Toothless. He put one hand on the Night Fury's head and another on his distressed son's shoulder. "Now Hiccup, what do _you _think happened?"

"I don't know," Hiccup moaned. "Gothi says they're allergic to something new on the island but I'm positive we got rid of everything."

"The dragons are still sick. So..."Stoick urged.

"Then there's still something on the island that's making them sick." Hiccup grabbed at his hair in frustration.

The two were interrupted by heavy wheezing sounds coming from outside. Panicked, Stoick rushed out the door and around the corner to find Thornado breathing heavily. Hiccup tumbled out after his father, pushing past the man to see how the Thunderdrum was doing. A sudden sneeze caused the dragon to cast shock waves. Stoick yanked Hiccup out of harm's way.

"That's the first sign," Hiccup whispered, his heart feeling as if it would drop into his stomach at any moment. "Sneezing."

Stoick carefully crouched beside his dragon. "But he was fine until we got back!"

"Then it's definitely something on the island," Hiccup whispered. "But what-?" Sudden, shocking realization struck him.

_Mildew._

"What?" Stoick asked worriedly, catching the naked shock that crossed his son's face.

Hiccup swallowed, not wanting to divulge his suspicions until he was positive. "I'm not sure yet, Dad. I gotta go!"

Ignoring his father's shouts, Hiccup tore through the village to Gobber's place. He hammered insistently at the door. The large man threw it open, his expression one of anger until he caught Hiccup's determined and energized expression. "Hiccup? Do you know what time it is?"

"Time to figure out a problem," Hiccup said firmly. "SUNSET!"

In seconds the girl was downstairs, shoving past the bewildered Gobber. "What's up?"

"I think I'm on to something but I need a second opinion." Hiccup said seriously.

"Let's hear it. Gobber, look after Shortie for me while I'm gone." Sunset and Hiccup set out for a long walk to talk things over. Gobber debated on whether or not to call Sunset back (as it was rather late for anyone to be out) before deciding that if he did, he was probably messing with Hiccup's brainstorm.

And Hiccup's brainstorms never completed themselves without Sunset pushing them along.

...

"Okay, so if neither of us saw Mildew get rid of something, then it's probably him that still has it." Sunset summarized as she and Hiccup walked blindly across the beach, not paying any attention to where they were going. "But we don't know _what _he bought, and so we can't confront him about it because we won't be able to prove he still has it when we don't know what it is."

"I think Mildew would be a little smarter than that, ever since we let him know we knew he was the one behind the framing of the dragons." Hiccup frowned, deep in thought. "And I have a sneaking suspicion that Mildew intentionally bought something that he _knew _would make the dragons sick."

"That's probably true." Sunset agreed. "And I don't think it's an item. I really don't think one little object would make _all _of the dragons as sick as they are. After Johann left, what changed a little before the dragons started getting sick?"

The answer struck them both at the same time.

"_The flowers!" _They chorused.

"The flowers are all across the village and that's where all the dragons are." Hiccup said excitedly. "And the flowers suddenly appeared after Johann left. _And _that's when the dragons started getting sick!"

"Those flowers aren't local, either. I've never seen them until a few days ago!" Sunset exclaimed. "But what _is _the flower?"

"I think we're going to have to talk to the one person who got a botany book from Johann's ship." Hiccup said determinedly. "Off to Fishlegs' house!"

The teens ran, back up across the beach and into the village. Luckily, Fishlegs was still awake and tending to Meatlug in her little stable. "Fishlegs," Hiccup panted. "I think we figured it out!"

Fishlegs rubbed Meatlug's feet and listened intently as Hiccup and Sunset explained their theory. His eyes widened in panic and realization. "Of course! The flower is the Blue Oleander! I read about in the botany book!"

"What can you remember about the flower?" Hiccup pressed, his heart pounding in anticipation.

Fishlegs screwed his face up in thought. "It's definitely poisonous to reptiles-and that means poisonous to dragons!"

"Was there anything about a cure?"

"I didn't get that far! I had to throw the book in the pit!"

Hiccup flapped his hands wildly. "Go get it! I don't know how much longer we have to find a cure so we need to hurry!"

Fishlegs obeyed, rubbing Meatlug lovingly on the head before running off. "_You can drop it off at my place!" _Hiccup hollered after him. "Come on, Sun. We're telling my dad and then we're going to pay Mildew a visit."

They raced back to Hiccup's house, where they found the rest of their friends (with the exception of Fishlegs) gathered around the front door. "What are you guys doing here?" Hiccup asked.

"Your dad got worried when you apparently ran off," Astrid explained. "He called us over to see if we could find you. He's inside right now-"

Before she could finish her sentence Stoick came out the front door with a blanket for Thornado. He spotted his son and sighed with relief. "Hiccup! Why did you run off like that?"

Hiccup quickly explained the theory he and Sunset had come up with. "Fishlegs is getting the book right now," Hiccup said. "So we should have the cure when he gets back."

"But we don't have solid proof that Mildew planted the flowers, Hiccup." Stoick explained patiently, although his blood boiled with fury at the elder man.

Tuffnut waved his hand in the air. "I saw him planting those things a few nights ago. Does that count?"

Everyone stared. "And you didn't think that something we should know?" Astrid snapped.

Tuffnut blinked. "Uh...er, well, now that I think about it..."

"Never mind," Stoick said impatiently. "We're going to pay the old man a visit."

...

When the thunderous knock sounded on Mildew's door half-past midnight, the man knew that the meddlesome teens had figured out the problem. He was mildly (_very _mildly) impressed that they had figured the problem out so soon.

But of course, they couldn't pin him to anything.

Mildew picked up his sheep Fungus (he knew so long as he held his pet the animal-lover would prevent anyone from harming him) and opened the door.

"Tuffnut saw you plant the flowers," Hiccup accused, getting straight to the chase. "And those flowers are making the dragons sick!"

Mildew pretended to be shocked. "Oh, I had no idea! I only planted the flowers to make town square look prettier and happier."

"Since when have you cared about those two things?" Sunset demanded.

"You planted those flowers with the intention of making the dragons sick!" Hiccup snapped.

Mildew glanced at Stoick with a calm, innocent expression. "I didn't know the flowers had properties that would harm dragons. I'm certainly not fond of the beasts, but I would _never _harm them."

Stoick sighed. He didn't believe the man for a second but without concrete evidence his hands were tied. He placed a hand on each of the kids' shoulders and guided them from Mildew's house. The older man cast a wicked smile after the departing group and shut the door. "Oh, those _poor _dragons indeed."

...

Hiccup, Sunset, Stoick and the other teens gathered at the Haddock household. There was no book waiting on the front stoop when they returned, so they could only assume Fishlegs was still searching.

The moonlight shone on the island of Berk, the silver light casting shadows across the village. Sunset glumly kicked at the ground. "I hope Fishlegs finds the book."

"Or else we're sunk," Tuffnut agreed, finishing what Sunset was unable to say.

"There he is!" Astrid called excitedly. She pointed in the distance, where Fishlegs was currently running. The boy soon approached them and to their dismay tears were running down his face.

"What's the matter?" Stoick demanded.

"There's nothing about a cure in the botany book," Fishlegs said hysterically. "But in the Book of Dragons is says that the Scauldron feeds on Blue Oleander." He held the book out to the group as he explained. "If it had venom, we could probably use it as the cure like with snakes and spiders. _But the Scauldron has no venom!"_

"Then the book is wrong!"

Gobber's booming voice caught their attention. The man walked up to them, Shortie riding on his shoulder. "I've met with a Scauldron before. It has rows and rows of razor sharp teeth!" He stretched his arms out to emphasize his point. "And it shoots boiling hot water that melts flesh!" His voice grew to a shout as he got more animated. "The Scauldron has no fear and no conscious! But it _does _have venom! Tons of it!"

"That's it, I fold!" Tuffnut held his hands up and backed away. "I like my flesh right where it is."

"Ditto," Ruffnut agreed. The two headed home to check on Barf and Belch.

Hiccup immediately took charge. "You guys stay here and take care of the dragons," he instructed his friends. Fishlegs hesitantly closed the book, looking at Hiccup nervously.

"What are you and Sunset going to do?"

Sunset shot the boy a grim smile before stepping up to the two men with Hiccup by her side. "Gobber?"

"Dad?"

"_We're going on a Scauldron hunt!" _ They chorused determinedly.

Gobber grinned. "And here I thought you'd never ask."

"Sunset, go help Gobber get the boat ready." Hiccup ordered. Sunset saluted him and took off with her caretaker following behind, handing Shortie to Astrid as he departed. Hiccup took a deep breath and headed inside to say goodbye to Toothless. His dragon was slumped in his stone bed. Hiccup bent by his head and rubbed it soothingly. "Hang in there, buddy. Sunset and I are going to help you. We'll be back before you know it."

_I hope._

Hiccup glanced out the window, suddenly spotting a soft glimmer of light in the distance. It was the signal he and Sunset had made up when they were kids. Hiccup gave Toothless a hug before jogging downstairs and heading outside, where he found his father tending to Thornado. "Dad? It's time to go."

"Alright," Stoick grunted, getting to his feet. "But before we go we need to grab one last thing."

Hiccup tilted his head, confused. "What?"

"You'll see." Stoick said grimly.

...

"Did he have to come along?" Sunset hissed to Hiccup. They were sailing across the inky sea and surrounded by mist. The sky was black and their only source of light were the twinkling silver stars. The one last 'thing' Stoick had brought along was Mildew, much against the man's will.

"Why am I here?" Mildew demanded once more, outraged. "I dug up the flowers like I was told!"

Stoick glared. "We're here because of you. If we're putting our lives at risk then so are _you_."

Mildew marched forward, waving his staff angrily. "Every time something goes wrong with your _precious dragons_-"This was sneered at the glowering Hiccup and Sunset. "-does not give you the right to automatically accuse me each time!"

He stormed past them and Gobber stepped up, holding a bucket. "So, what's the plan? Or are we doing this as we go?"

"Gobber, you and I are going to secure the Scauldron's head." Stoick informed. "Sven-"He gestured to the rower behind him. "-will keep its jaw open. Hiccup and Sunset-"

"-will drain the poison into the bucket," the two kids finished in unison. "Got it."

Hiccup grabbed the basket of Blue Oleanders and leaned over the edge of the boat, scattering the flowers into the sea. "This should attract the Scauldron to us."

A long amount of time passed and the flowers were still floating on the surface of the water. Impatient, Mildew stormed up to Stoick, Sunset and Hiccup, who were leaning against the wooden ship rails. "This was a dumb idea to begin with and it's clearly not working! Can we go now?" He snapped.

Hiccup scowled and turned his head to snap back but Stoick placed a restraining hand on his back. "We're here for something different, son."

"Like that," Sunset gasped, pointing at the water. Everyone stared at the bright figure swimming around the boat, just beneath the surface. It breached the water behind the ship, showing its spikes running along its spine.

Hiccup frowned when the Scauldron showed no interest into coming closer. "We have to lure it aboard!" He grabbed another basket of flowers and upended it on the deck.

Mildew tossed his hands in the air. "Oh, sure! Lure it up here where it'll _eat us alive!_"

Stoick grabbed a bola and tossed it to Gobber. "You secure its neck with this and I'll lasso the horn!" He ordered, holding up his catch pole.

Everyone peered over the side of the ship, trying to catch sight of the Scauldron. "Did it leave?" Sunset asked in worry.

The only sound was the breaking waves. Everyone was silent as they strained to hear any noise made by the Scauldron. A startled cry made by Sven caused everyone to whip around in time to catch Sven's oar being yanked from his grasp. Sven looked at the water frantically and yelped upon seeing a spray of water coming towards the ship.

The Scauldron struck the ship so hard the entire hull was thrown from the sea. Sunset's teeth jarred as they landed roughly back in the water. "I think it came back."

"I didn't notice!" Mildew said scathingly back, climbing to his feet. He turned to see the Scauldron in all its blue monstrous glory towering over him. He yelped in panic and scrambled away. The Scauldron snarled and rose higher from the water, stepping onto the rim of the ship. The Vikings yelled in panic as they started to slide towards the dragon.

Mildew managed to grab hold of the mast, but Hiccup and Sunset did not have time to grab onto the sides of the ship. They slid rapidly towards the dragon. "Son!" Stoick roared, watching helplessly as his son moved further from his reach.

"Got 'em!" Gobber grinned as he grabbed Hiccup's arm. Sunset quickly wrapped her arms around Hiccup's waist and sighed with relief.

The baskets of flowers tumbled down the ship and one struck Mildew in the face. The man hollered and whacked the basket away, coughing out a mouthful of flowers. The Scauldron snapped eagerly at the flying flowers. Stoick realized that this was the perfect distraction for him and Gobber to make their move. "Let's go!" He roared and the two men let go, sliding down towards the dragon.

Stoick threw a rope at the dragon and it looped around its horn. Gobber used an anchor to secure the neck of the dragon. Panicked, the Scauldron attempted to jump back into the sea. The ship righted itself from the loss of weight. Stoick grunted, using all his strength to keep the beast above the surface. "**Sven!**" He hollered. "**We need that barrel **_**now!**_"

Sven rushed forward with the barrel in hand. He stopped just before the dragon's head, waiting for the perfect moment. Hiccup and Sunset grabbed the bucket. "We got the venom bucket!" Hiccup called.

"Make sure you kids don't get any venom in you!" Stoick warned.

"Yeah, yeah, dead in twenty-four hours." Hiccup kept his eyes on the Scauldron. "We know."

Sven tossed the barrel into the dragon's mouth, grinning triumphantly when it was a perfect toss. "Ha!"

His victory was short lived when the Scauldron bit down on the barrel, turning it into splinters.

"Look out, Sven!" Stoick hollered, spying the rising tail. Sven did not have time to duck and was whacked from the ship. Sunset squinted into the distance and was relieved to see the man bobbing above the surface.

"He's good!"

Gobber and Stoick grunted as they continued to pull at the Scauldron's head. Mildew cowered behind the mast, offering no assistance. Stoick glanced over his shoulder and spotted the tail prepared to knock both kids into the water. He let go of the rope and pushed the teens out of the way, getting struck by the tail instead.

"**Dad!**" Hiccup cried in panic, watching as his father clung to the thrashing tail, getting smacked against the deck and side of the ship. Eventually, Stoick managed to pin the tail between his body and the top of the mast.

"Got the tail!" He called down.

"Grab the other line!" Gobber shouted at Hiccup. The boy quickly grabbed the rope, hooking it to a peg and pulling as hard as he could. It was no use, as the dragon was too strong for him. The boy was pulled rapidly towards the thrashing dragon and the swirling water.

"_Hiccup!" _Stoick cried.

Sunset lunged forwards and grabbed the rope as well, digging her boots into the deck. Although the combined strength of the skinny teens wasn't much, it was enough to hold their ground and keep the Scauldron above the surface.

"Pull the beast in!" Stoick hollered. "We'll use the mast to wedge its jaw open!"

Gobber, Hiccup and Sunset pulled until the mast was forced between the dragon's open mouth. "Mildew, grab the bucket!"

"Hang on!" Mildew cried indigently, peering from behind the mast. "I didn't even-"

"Get the bucket or I'll come down there and throw you overboard myself!" Stoick threatened.

Mildew whimpered and grabbed the bucket rolling by his feet. Gobber, Hiccup and Sunset strained to keep the Scauldron's head against the mast. Stoick froze upon seeing a mist come from the dragon's mouth. _"__**Everyone take cover!**__ It's going to spray!"_

Mildew threw the bucket as if it were on fire and raced as far away from the dragon as possible. Hiccup and Sunset dropped the rope and grabbed a shield lying on the deck. "Hurry up, Gobber!" Sunset cried. The man wasted no time in joining the teens. Mildew ducked behind a broken crate at the other end of the ship.

A high-pitched whistling echoed through the air. Boiling water sprayed from its mouth, tearing the mast and striking every inch of the ship. Stoick yelled as he fell with the mast into the water. "**Dad!**" Hiccup cried and tried running for him, but Gobber grabbed the back of his vest, preventing the boy from getting too far.

The final line holding the Scauldron snapped and the dragon reared back, furious. It roared at Mildew, who was cowering behind the crate. Screaming in panic, Mildew shoved the crate aside and ran to the other side of the boat. The Scauldron spotted a Blue Oleander sticking to Mildew's butt and lunged forward, nipping the flower and biting Mildew's butt in the process.

"_OUCH!"_

A little happier, the dragon sunk back into the sea. Stoick climbed back on deck just in time to see the head disappear beneath the surface. Hiccup's shoulders slumped. "It left...and we didn't get the venom."

Mildew's wailing caught their attention. The man was twitching on the deck, his butt in the air. Hiccup and Sunset exchanged smug glances. "Or maybe we did," Sunset grinned.

...

After rescuing Sven the boat returned to Berk, the full moon shining beautifully down on them. The teens gathered in front of the forge, where Gobber was doing the unpleasant task of extracting the venom from Mildew. Tuffnut grinned. "It's pretty nasty that we're all here waiting for something to come out of Mildew's butt."

"I feel sorrier for the dragons who'll be taking it." Sunset muttered, stroking Shortie, who was sleeping on her shoulder.

Astrid laughed, amused. "Those screams we're hearing? Yeah, that's the sound of our dragons about to be cured."

A few minutes later Gobber exited the forge, holding a pitcher of the venom and a blank expression on his face. "I once saw a Nadder's spine slice through a man's eyeball like a grape. I watched my own arm get devoured by a Monstrous Nightmare. **But never, **_**never**_**, have I seen anything so disturbing... as that old man's bare behind!**" Gobber thrust the pitcher into Hiccup's hands. "Give this to your dragons. **I'm going into the forest to scream!**"

Sunset watched the disturbed Gobber storm towards the forest. "I'm sure he'll be fine...I think."

...

Stoick returned home, his lips quirking into an amused smile as he heard Gobber's scream ring through the night. He pushed open the door to see Hiccup and Sunset tending to Toothless, who was still unconscious and breathing heavily. Hiccup and Sunset curled against their dragon, the Terrible Terror Sunset had been looking after curled in her lap. "Everything will be fine, Dad." Hiccup said tiredly, exhausted from the night's events.

Stoick nodded slowly and headed back outside. He paced in front of Thornado, who was still resting against the tarp.

"Dad?"

Stoick turned around, pleasantly surprised to see Toothless standing cheerfully in between Sunset and Hiccup, looking a lot more energized. Hiccup beamed. "They're starting to come around!"

A soft grumbling caught Stoick's attention. Thornado opened his eyes and shifted, growling softly. Stoick smiled happily and crouched down, bumping his helmet against Thornado's nose in an affectionate head-butt.

Hiccup stroked Toothless' muzzle. "Hey, bud. How are ya feeling?"

Toothless cooed happily and shot a full plasma blast into the sky. Sunset grinned and wrapped her arms around his neck. "He's fine."

Shortie scrambled from the Haddock house, chirping madly and rolling in the grass. Sunset laughed as he shot a tiny flame into the air, indication his own well-health. "And he's fine too."

Thornado roared, shooting off a powerful sound-wave. Stoick grinned and placed a hand on his head. "And so is he."

"All because Mildew just happened to get a bite to the butt by a Scauldron," Hiccup said, bursting into laughter.

"That was very disturbing," Sunset said, her lips twitching at the thought of poor Gobber. "But hey, it was a small price to pay."

"Because we'll do _anything _for our dragon," Hiccup finished. Toothless licked his face and nudged against Sunset, purring happily.

Another scream tore through the air, ruining the moment.

Sunset winced. "Yeah, okay, I _really_ should go check on him."


	10. A Girl Named Heather: Part One

**I do not own Dragons: Riders of Berk. Direct quotes from the series are bolded.**

**A Girl Named Heather: Part One **

Like most afternoons, Sunset found herself flying through Berk on Toothless, right behind her best friend. The redhead kept her arms securely around Hiccup's waist as she peered over his shoulder. "There's the flag!" She called excitedly.

"Let's go buddy!" Hiccup urged, taking Toothless to his maximum speed. They whipped through the forest, twisting among the trees and flying past the first checkpoint flag.

Astrid scanned the skies from the academy with excitement. She spotted the trio fast approaching the last checkpoint flag located on the cliff hanging above the building. "There they are!"

Fishlegs, who was studiously keeping track of their progress, marked another tally on the sundial with a piece of chalk. "They made a new course record!" He reported excitedly.

Toothless swooped in through the open door, barking happily. Sunset and Hiccup high-fived. "That's how a speed course is supposed to be done." Sunset grinned triumphantly. The two dismounted Toothless and stroked him fondly. "So, how good did we do?"

"You're still the fastest, but there's _someone _who's catching up pretty quickly." Fishlegs informed.

Surprised, Hiccup, Sunset and Toothless looked at their friends suspiciously. Ruffnut and Tuffnut paused in their daily fight to hold up their hands in defense. "It's totally not us," Tuffnut assured them.

"I think I have an idea on who it is," Sunset glared accusingly at Astrid, who was petting Stormfly. The girl glanced briefly at them and smirked challengingly.

Hiccup stared in shock. "How can Toothless possibly be getting slower?"

"Oh, he isn't." Fishlegs approached Hiccup and held out the book he used to keep speed scores. "_She _is getting faster." The large boy gestured towards the smug Deadly Nadder.

Hiccup put his hands on his hips. "You don't say? Is there anything you'd like to share, Astrid?" He asked teasingly.

Astrid continued scratching Stormfly's chin. "Oh, nothing, really. I've just been experimenting with what she eats and it's apparently working. And it also seems to be making you mad!"

"Oh, whatever." Sunset scoffed. "You're just getting lucky."

"Is that so?" Astrid grinned. "Then how about we meet tomorrow to work on our speed times? Then you can see just how _unlucky _you guys are."

"It's on!" Hiccup laughed.

"_Woo-hoo!"_

Everyone glanced up to see Snotlout flying into the arena on Hookfang. The boy grinned widely. "Guys, you gotta come see what I just found!"

"Is it a severed head?" Tuffnut asked excitedly.

"Ooh! Is it our cousin Lars?" Ruffnut put in.

"Is it the severed head of our cousin Lars?"

Startled, Fishlegs glanced at the twins. "Cousin Lars died?"

The twins were immediately subdued by the very idea. "Don't stay stuff like that, man." Tuffnut scolded. "It's not cool."

"Are you guys coming or not?" Snotlout asked impatiently.

Curious, the other teens climbed onto their dragons. "Lead the way," Hiccup invited. Beaming, Snotlout complied. They flew to the beach, where they instantly spotted the remains of a wrecked ship among the sand and rock. The teens landed near the wreckage. Tuffnut rolled his eyes. "Oh yeah, this is _so _cool. I've _never _seen a wrecked ship before," he said sarcastically. Ruffnut nodded in agreement.

"I saw it first so that means it's mine." Snotlout told them, motioning for them all to peek underneath the sail. They did, and it was much to their surprise to find a pretty, sleeping girl with long raven hair and pale skin curled up against the edge of the sideways boat.

Tuffnut smiled goofily. "This is so much better than a wrecked boat."

Snotlout glared at him. "Already called dibs!"

Astrid slapped their shoulders, disgusted by their behaviour. "Guys, this is a _person_!"

"Isn't it awesome?" Snotlout asked, completely missing her point. Hiccup rolled his eyes and pushed past his cousin, carefully crawling towards the girl.

"Hey," he whispered, nudging her arm. "Are you okay?"

The girl moaned softly, waking up and glancing up tiredly. Her eyes immediately grew panicked upon seeing the strangers and she shoved away from the teens, cowering against the side of the boat. "No, no, it's okay!" Hiccup assured the frightened girl. "**We're friends.**"

The girl eyed them with suspicion for a moment before collapsing into a heavy coughing fit. Deciding that they were probably her only hope for rescue, she asked weakly, "Do you have some water?"

Fishlegs, Snotlout and Tuffnut immediately thrust their cups of water towards the girl. Snotlout shoved Tuffnut and Fishlegs out of the way and held his out to the girl with a smooth smile. "It's my pleasure."

With a small smile the girl accepted the cup and drank deeply. She wiped the lingering drops off of her chin and passed the cup back to Snotlout with a grateful smile. The smile disappeared when she recalled her situation. "Can you tell me where I am?" She asked softly.

Hiccup smiled welcomingly. "This is the island of Berk." Tuffnut and Snotlout nodded idly, staring at the girl with love-struck eyes. Toothless shoved past the teens, curiously sniffing the girl. Frightened, the girl held her arms over her face to protect herself. Hiccup quickly shoved Toothless back out. "Don't worry, he won't hurt you." He motioned for the girl outside. "You can come out."

Hesitant, the girl slowly crawled from the wrecked ship and watched as Hiccup ordered the Night Fury to settle down, which he did. Both turned to smile at her when she stood, her legs a little shaky. "How'd you do that?" She asked in awe.

Immediately jumping on the chance to impress the girl, Snotlout scoffed. "Oh, that's nothing. _Hookfang! _You get over here right now!"

Hookfang glanced at his rider, amused by his attempt to show dominance, and flew off. Snotlout scowled. "Oh, he's quite the jokester. He'll be back soon." He coughed. "So, I'm Snotlout, and I'm the one who rescued you. You're welcome.

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Since Snotlout started the introductions, I'll finish them off. I'm Hiccup," he introduced. "And this is Toothless." He patted the Night Fury's head. "The twins are Ruffnut and Tuffnut, that's Fishlegs, Astrid and Sunset." He pointed to each person as he listed their name.

"I'm Heather," the girl said softly. "Thank you, all of you, for helping me."

"So, what happened, Heather?" Astrid asked, her curiosity no longer able to be contained.

A sad expression crossed Heather's face. "My parents and I were travelling back to our island when pirates attacked." She said solemnly. "They ransacked our boat and brought us back to our island. They lay siege to it and I managed to escape." She cast a glance at the sea. "But my parents weren't so lucky."

Hiccup placed a comforting hand on her arm. "Hey, don't worry. My dad's the chief of Berk. He can help you." He led the girl away with the other teens following behind. Astrid and Sunset lingered behind. The blonde looked at Sunset, whose expression was one of reluctance.

"The only time you have that look on your face is when you're thinking bad about someone and it's true, but you don't want to believe it." Astrid observed. "You have a strange feeling about this too, huh?"

Sunset frowned. "There was an immense lack of tears considering she lost her parents and her home all in one go."

Astrid nodded in agreement. She bent down and studied the interior of the wrecked ship, searching for anything that was out of place. But nothing was found. "Come on," she muttered. The two girls hurried to their dragons. The twins and Fishlegs had already taken off. Hiccup helped Heather aboard Toothless, leaving Sunset to crawl on behind her.

"Um..."

The noise caught Astrid's attention. She glanced down to see Snotlout hesitantly approaching her. "Can...can I have a ride?"

Astrid smirked. "Well, that depends on whether you can admit that I'm best Viking warrior on Berk."

Snotlout scowled, but muttered, "Astrid Hofferson is the best Viking warrior on Berk."

"That wasn't so hard, was it?" Astrid grinned and Snotlout shot her a glare and climbed on behind her. They flew towards the village, the wind rushing past them.

"...this is pretty cozy." Snotlout said flirtatiously.

"Keep the hands off or I'll push _you _off." Astrid warned idly.

"Got it."

...

"This is my place," Hiccup declared as Toothless landed in his front yard. He helped Heather dismount and the girl glanced around curiously.

"You have a nice village," Heather complimented. "It has a comforting feel to it."

"Yeah, well, we're a pretty close-knit village. Most of the time, anyway." Hiccup motioned for Heather to follow. They entered the Haddock household, where Stoick was in the middle of preparing dinner. The whole house smelled of fish stew.

"Ah, Hiccup. I was wondering when you would get back." He glanced up from the pot cooking on the fire and his eyes instantly locked onto the unfamiliar girl standing self-consciously behind Hiccup. "And who is this young lady? I don't think I've seen her around the village before," Stoick observed.

Hiccup and Sunset exchanged looks. "Well, she's not exactly from the island." Sunset said.

Stoick closed his eyes. "What did you two do this time?"

"Nothing!" They exclaimed in unison. Heather giggled at their indigent tones and quickly placed a hand over her mouth.

"Her ship crashed onto our shores," Hiccup explained. "Her island was taken by pirates and she was the only one to escape."

Stoick's expression softened instantly. "I'm sorry to hear that, young lady. I am Stoick the Vast, chief of Berk. And you are welcome to stay here until we find a safe place for you to go. And your name would be...?"

"Heather. Thank you, sir, for your kindness." Heather said softly.

"I'll get you settled in my room," Hiccup led Heather upstairs with Toothless trailing behind. "Sun, can you get her something to eat?"

"Sure thing." Sunset grabbed a wooden bowl from the shelf and stood beside the warm pot, waiting for the stew to finish cooking. She shot a glance at Stoick, who was now distractedly stirring the soup. "_'What did you two do this time?'_" She mimicked, catching Stoick's attention. "What did you think we did? Kidnap the girl from her island?"

"For some reason, it wouldn't have surprised me if that was the case." Stoick muttered, inspecting the stew. Satisfied by its texture and temperature, he ladled some into the waiting bowl. "Make sure you and Hiccup take good care of her. She went through a traumatizing experience and a lot is happening to her at one time."

"She'll be taken care of," Sunset promised the man. She jogged upstairs to find Hiccup showing Heather his blueprints. She seemed rather interested in all of them. "Here's some stew," Sunset said, holding the bowl out.

Heather smiled gratefully and took it. "Thank you. I appreciate this. I'm a complete stranger and you're all being so nice to me."

"It's nothing. We're happy to help." Hiccup shot the girl a smile. "If you need anything during the night, I'll just be downstairs."

"Thanks, Hiccup." Heather smiled shyly. Toothless waddled past the girl and Heather shied away slightly. Sunset followed her best friends downstairs, leaving Hiccup's new houseguest to eat her food and rest. And for some reason, leaving Heather alone didn't sit well with Sunset.

_You're being paranoid, _she chided. _Tons of people wash up on shores with tragic stories. Heather is one of them._

But while the girl certainly seemed...shaken, she didn't seem distraught enough considering what she had gone through. And Astrid thought something was off about the girl too.

"What are you thinking about, Sun?"

Startled from her thoughts, Sunset turned to see Stoick and Hiccup eyeing her curiously. "Oh. Nothing. I guess I just zoned out."

"It's been quite the day for you kids," Stoick agreed. "And I think it's time you all got some rest."

"Uh, sure. I'll see you tomorrow, Hiccup." Sunset waved at her friend, gave Toothless a hug and left. She walked outside and was surprised to see that darkness was quickly falling. "Gee, it _has _been an eventful day."

A soft grunting noise caused Sunset to glance around the village. She spotted Astrid coming from the side of her house, struggling to pull a massive barrel of...something. "Hey, Astrid! Need some help?"

Astrid looked up in panic and quickly moved in front of the barrel. _"No! _I mean, no thanks. I got it."

Her flushed face and heavy pants told Sunset otherwise. She was confused for only a moment as to why Astrid would refuse her help when she remembered what the blonde had said earlier in the ring. She grinned knowingly. "If it's the magic food you're feeding Stormfly, I promise I won't tell Hiccup."

Astrid hesitated for only a moment before nodding. Sunset always kept her promises and Astrid trusted her. Besides, she could _really _use some help moving the barrel.

The redhead jogged over and together they managed to bring the food over to Stormfly. The dragon chirped cheerfully upon seeing them and wagged her tail. Sunset eyed the food in amusement as Astrid tossed it to her. "Chicken, huh?"

"It gives Stormfly all the energy she needs." Astrid grinned smugly as her dragon eagerly gobbled up the food. "Do you think Hiccup will ever figure it out?"

"Probably not," Sunset admitted. "I never would have guessed it was chicken that was giving Stormfly all that speed."

Astrid laughed. "Yeah, but then again, you don't even know what chicken _tastes _like."

"True that."

Stormfly's head suddenly jerked up. She peered intently at the shadows surrounding her barn, ears alert. "What is it?" Astrid whispered, scanning the village. Unable to see anything from their position in the barn Sunset and Astrid crept into the darkness. "Stay here, girl." Astrid said softly. Stormfly cooed in understanding and went back to eating her chicken.

"I don't see anything," Sunset whispered, straining her eyes. The shadows cast around town made it difficult to see. Astrid motioned for the redhead to follow her and together the two girls ducked behind houses, looking for a sign of anything suspicious that would have made Stormfly react the way she did.

"There!" Sunset pointed at a dark figure running through the village. Astrid and Sunset jogged after her, but it soon became apparent that the figure had too much of a head start for them to catch up. Sunset squinted as the figure took off and for a brief moment the silver light from the moon illuminated their body. "Is that Heather?" Sunset asked in puzzlement as the girl disappeared around a building.

Astrid narrowed her eyes. "Uh-huh."

Sunset sighed heavily. "Well, if I wasn't suspicious before, I sure am now."

...

Heather's odd behaviour continued to bother Sunset. The following morning she decided to talk to Hiccup. There was always the chance that the person sneaking through the village only _looked _like Heather.

The redhead walked out into the late morning sun and headed to the Haddock household. She pushed open the door (she had given up on knocking long ago-Hiccup's house was pretty much her house) and was instantly greeted by silence.

"Hiccup?" Sunset called. The soft crackling of the fire was her only response. "Okay," she mused as she shut the door. "Maybe he's at the forge."

She jogged towards Gobber's shop and halted by the door. She watched with her mouth agape as Hiccup took off into the air, a new, shorter connecting rod attached to Toothless and _Heather _riding behind Hiccup. The trio disappeared high into the sky, both whooping gleefully as Toothless sped along.

"I'm so not happy right now," Sunset scowled at the disappearing figures. "Looks like _I'll _be the one telling Astrid our little contest is off because _someone _is being inconsiderate."

Annoyed beyond belief Sunset jogged to the beach, scanning the small cliffs that they often perched on when waiting for someone else. Sure enough, a few yards away, she could see Stormfly with Astrid perched atop. Sunset sprinted the rest of the way, shouting and waving her arms to get the blonde's attention.

Astrid glanced down at Sunset, her impatience quickly morphing into confusion. "Sunset? Where's Hiccup? I thought we were-"

Before Sunset could explain Hiccup chose that precise moment to shoot by, not even noticing the two girls. Heather laughed gleefully, the sound ringing in Astrid's ears. The blonde watched in irritation as they disappeared in the distance. "Is he serious?"

Sunset shrugged helplessly. "Sorry, Astrid. I would have reminded him but he left without me."

"It's not your fault." Astrid flew Stormfly down to the beach so that Sunset could climb on. "It's _his _fault."

"It normally is," Sunset sighed as they took off into the air. They flew into the dragon academy, where the rest of their friends were waiting.

"Took you long enough," Ruffnut drawled, peering at them lazily from Barf's head.

"Trust me, it would have been longer if someone had stuck to previously made plans." Astrid grumbled. She and Sunset dismounted Stormfly and the Nadder went to get a drink of water.

Snotlout glared in exasperation at Hookfang, who was pacing the length of the arena impatiently. "Look, if we're not going to train, then I'm gonna go before Hookfang lights this place up."

"How come Hiccup isn't with you?" Fishlegs asked, pausing in his cleaning of Meatlug's ears to glance curiously at Sunset.

The redhead frowned and gestured towards the crystal blue sky. "He's currently giving Heather a private lesson."

As if he meant to demonstrate her point Hiccup flew above the academy clearly visible through the metal encasement. He whooped happily as they sailed past, Heather giggling madly behind him. Fishlegs missed the irritation in the girl's voice and brightened. "Ooh! Can anyone get private lessons?"

"Just her," Astrid answered dryly, glaring at the spot in the sky Hiccup and Toothless had once occupied.

Ruffnut studied the blonde and grinned mischievously. "Looks like someone's upset there's another rooster in the hen house."

Astrid glowered at the girl and walked over to Stormfly, who was resting by the water trough. "I am not jealous," she snapped, scratching Stormfly's chin. Just as the words left her mouth Hiccup and Heather swooped in on Toothless, their faces flushed with excitement.

Hiccup helped Heather dismount and the girl twirled around, taking in the academy. Hiccup faced his friends and smiled cheerfully. "Hey, guys! Ready for some training?"

He was met with twin glares of annoyance from Astrid and Sunset. Astrid crossed her arms. "You should really take a page out of Sunset's book on manners, Hiccup. You seem to be lacking some."

Hiccup stared at her in confusion for a moment before remembering the plans they had made yesterday. He slapped his forehead, annoyed at himself. "I am so sorry. I completely forgot."

Astrid scoffed and turned to Heather with an antagonistic smile. "Did you sleep well, Heather?"

The girl turned to Astrid, her smile attempting to be sincere. "I did, thank you Astrid." Heather said sweetly. She turned her attention on Hiccup, who glancing between the girls nervously. "So this is where you train the dragons?" She asked with genuine interest.

"Yup. This is where we train dragons how to be a part of our everyday lives." Hiccup explained.

Eager to impress the pretty girl, Fishlegs scurried forward and held out the Book of Dragons with pride. "This is where we record everything. I'm the one responsible for writing it all down."

Snotlout snorted and shoved the large boy out of the way. "Yeah, you write down what _Hiccup _tells you." He grinned suavely at the girl. "I on the other hand, do what I want."

Heather's hands twitched anxiously. "Could I see the book?"

Alarm bells rang in Sunset's head as Fishlegs held the book out. She swooped in and snatched the Book of Dragons from his hands. Astrid, who was having the same feelings as Sunset, stormed past the stunned teens and grabbed Sunset by the arm, dragging her to Hiccup. "We'll be taking that," she said coldly, ignoring the soft scowl on Heather's face.

"We need to talk," Astrid muttered as she ushered the annoyed Hiccup away from the gawking group. They stood at the far end of the academy for privacy.

"I don't think it's a good idea to show Heather all these secrets," Sunset said, phrasing her words carefully.

Hiccup shrugged off her urgent tone. "It's fine, guys."

Astrid frowned. "We don't trust her, Hiccup."

The boy glanced at Sunset in surprise at this admittance, as it was very rare for Sunset to be willing to distrust anyone without a good, solid reason. Rather annoyed by their behaviour towards Heather, he snapped, "_I _trust her and that should be good enough for you."

Hiccup stormed towards the group, ready to begin. Astrid and Sunset watched after him, hurt that he just dismissed their concerns. "I don't like the way she looked at this book," Sunset muttered.

"Keep the book with you," Astrid ordered, her eyes narrowed. "In fact, let's go find a nice hiding spot for it right now. And whatever you do, _don't _give it back to Hiccup until this girl is gone."

Sunset nodded hesitantly and the two left the arena. Heather watched them go, the Book of Dragons clutched under the redhead's arm. Her right eye twitched slightly. She knew they were going to hide the book and she had no way of sneaking off to follow them, as she was surrounded by smitten boys and one mildly amused female.

It looked like she was going to have to find another way to obtain the desired information.

...

Dusk fell and it was that time where Heather managed to slip away from Hiccup, who was busy feeding Toothless. The girl was irritated that Astrid and Sunset had seen right through her so quickly. "I guess I'm going to have to find that book one way or another," Heather muttered as she walked towards Fishlegs. The boy was playing with Meatlug in his front yard. "But for now, I'll have to get information from the trainers."

She cleared her throat, notifying Fishlegs of her presence. The boy got to his feet immediately and Meatlug cooed in greeting. "Hey, Fishlegs! Or maybe the more accurate title is Log-Master of the Book of Dragons." She smiled sweetly.

"You can call me whatever you'd like," Fishlegs grinned bashfully.

"I was just wondering, what would one find in the Book of Dragons about a Gronkle?"

Fishlegs positively glowed with excitement. This was his element. "Gronkle's are members of the Boulder Class," he explained. "They fourteen feet long and have an eighteen-foot wingspan." He picked up the edge of Meatlug's wing and expanded it to show Heather. "And most importantly, they are five-thousand seven hundred and twenty-four pounds of pure love." He gave Meatlug a hug and she nuzzled against him affectionately.

"She's really cute," Heather smiled. "How does she do in battle?"

Fishlegs motioned her over. "Feel her skin."

Heather curiously approached the Gronkle and hesitantly stroked her nose. Fishlegs smiled proudly. "Her skin is impenetrable and thick like armour."

Heather hummed softly. Believing that he was really impressing her, Fishlegs grabbed a rock and went behind his dragon. He tossed it at her hide and the rock immediately bounced off Meatlug's skin and struck Fishlegs in the face. He grinned in embarrassment and rubbed his noise. "It's also pretty springy."

Heather giggled softly and joined Fishlegs behind Meatlug. She studied the tail with interest. "What purpose does the tail have? It looks like a weapon."

"That's because it is." He lifted up Meatlug's tail. "It works like a bludgeon."

"You have a pretty cool dragon." Heather smiled. "Thanks for sharing all this with me. I'm kind of tired, so I think I'll head off for Hiccup's house."

"If you have any more questions I'll be happy to answer." Fishlegs grinned goofily and waved as Heather departed.

He didn't even notice as she headed to the Hooligan Harbour rather than the Haddock household.

...

Heather climbed down the wooden docks and spotted the male twin with his Hideous Zippleback, chucking rocks into the water. "I thought I heard his voice," she mused before approaching them. "Hey, Tuffnut."

Tuffnut whipped around upon hearing her voice and grinned excitedly. "Hey! Heather! What's up?"

"Just taking a walk," Heather shrugged and glanced at his Zippleback curiously. "Actually, I've been meaning to ask you if you could show me how you and Ruffnut shoot fire from this big guy."

"I can totally do that!" Tuffnut beamed and motioned for her to climb on Barf's head. She did so cautiously and was awed when the dragon head gave no protest. She hung on tightly as Tuffnut ordered his dragon to stand up. "All you have to do is yank on his head and he'll spray gas. I'll yank on Belch's head and he'll ignite the gas." Tuffnut explained. "Oh, and don't breathe the gas in."

Heather titled her head to the side. "Why?"

"You really don't want to know." Tuffnut said feelingly. "When you're ready, give me the signal."

Heather blinked. "And that would be...?"

Tuffnut frowned. "Man, I always forget that part." He rapped his knuckles against his helmet in an attempt to remember.

"Is it 'fire'?" Heather suggested, thinking that the signal between the twins wouldn't be a complex one.

"That's it!" Tuffnut exclaimed. "You're really good! Way better than my sister, who I could easily get rid of, by the way. Just saying." He chuckled to himself and directed his dragon to face the boat in front of him. "Ready...FIRE!"

Heather yanked on Barf's head and he immediately sprayed gas onto the empty boat. Heather held her breath as Tuffnut gave Belch his order and soon the boat was alight with flames. Tuffnut laughed evilly. "That was awesome!"

"Now what?" Heather asked nervously.

"We hide until the chief finds us and gives us a butt-load of trouble." Tuffnut said simply.

Heather quickly climbed off the Zippleback. "Thanks, Tuffnut, for this...demonstration. I'll see you later."

"Later," Tuffnut waved happily as Heather booked it. "She's cute."

"_Thorston!" _

Tuffnut pouted as he spotted Stoick lumbering down the docks towards him, his face a mask of fury. "Ah, man. I didn't even get a chance to hide."

...

"That was a close one," Heather muttered as she walked back through the village. "The last thing I need is to get in trouble."

"Hey, Heather!"

The girl glanced up to see Snotlout waving at her eagerly from his house. What interested her was the Monstrous Nightmare standing idly beside him. "Hey, Snotlout." Heather walked over and carefully approached Hookfang. He allowed her to stroke his chin. "I meant to tell that you have a pretty impressive dragon."

Snotlout waved the compliment off dismissively. "Yeah, thanks. You know I don't think you thanked me for saving your life." He sidled up to the girl expectantly.

Heather smiled politely. "Thanks, Snotlout." She turned her attention back to the dragon. "How much does this big guy weigh?"

"Around five thousand pounds. He's Monstrous, just like his rider." Snotlout flexed his muscles arrogantly. "How about I take you on a tour of the island?"

"Oh, no thanks. Hiccup already took me on one with Toothless." Heather ignored the stunned expression on Snotlout's face and examined Hookfang's wings. She lifted the edge up and spotted something coating his scales. "How does he flame up?"

"The spit on his scales lets him do that," Snotlout said impatiently, not quite liking that his dragon was getting more attention than him. "It coats his whole body. And the ladies _really _like the smell of it." He took some off of Hookfang's scales and rubbed it on his body.

Heather resisted the urge to shudder and experimentally touched the spit. "And he can light up on command?"

"He could, if he ever _listened _to me." Snotlout scowled. "He's a pretty pig-headed dragon."

Calmly, Hookfang turned his head and cast a flame on Snotlout's behind. Heather gasped in shock and Snotlout, who was used to this occurrence, merely offered a false smile. "I'll be right back." He tore for the water trough resting by the side of his house and he jumped in it, sighing in relief. Hookfang snickered.

"Uh...don't rush for my sake!" Heather called. She turned her head and spotted Hiccup walking through the village. He cast his cousin an amused glance before smiling at Heather.

"I haven't seen you all day!"

"I've been pretty busy." Heather smiled. "Where are you off to?"

"Oh, I'm just going to grab the Book of Dragons back from Sunset. I have a few more things I think I can add to it. I'll see you back at the house."

Heather beamed as Hiccup headed off again. _Maybe I won't have to go searching for the book after all._

...

"What is the _matter _with you?"

The demand came from Gobber, whose hulking frame blocked Sunset's bedroom doorframe. The large man stared at the girl in bafflement as she peeked through the window, trying to see if Hiccup had given up and left yet.

"It's a complicated matter," Sunset hissed. She allowed the curtains to fall back into place and crawled away from the window. "Just tell him I'm not here."

"Too late. I already told him you _are _here." Gobber crossed his arms. "If you don't want to see him, fine. All he wants is the Book of Dragons."

"Oh, no!" Sunset cried, getting to her feet. "The book stays with me!"

"It seems you're finally developing the quality known as greed. I don't like it. It doesn't suit you." Gobber pointed his hooked hand at his charge. "Get. The. Book."

Sunset puffed out her chest and glared up at him, her helmet falling halfway over her emerald eyes. "No."

"Alright. The hard way, then." With ease Gobber picked up the protesting girl and slung her over one shoulder so that she could not interfere. With lazy eyes he scanned the mildly messy room and ignored the tiny fists beating against his broad back. "Where oh where would Sunset hide the Book of Dragons?"

On a hunch he whipped the pillow from the bed. Satisfied, he picked the book from its hiding place. "That couldn't have been comfortable."

"Gobber!" Sunset shrieked, twisting madly. "You can't give him the book! It's not safe!"

"I'm supposed to be the paranoid one and you're supposed to be the sensible one." Gobber remarked as he lumbered down the stairs. "Not the other way around."

Hiccup was just about to barge inside when Gobber threw the door open again. Hiccup caught a brief glimpse of the thrashing Sunset before Gobber gave a brief nod, tossed the book at him and shut the door firmly. Hiccup hesitated, wondering if Sunset's odd behaviour was because of his neglect that morning. "I'll make it up to her later," Hiccup decided as he hurried for home, the book clutched to his chest. He wanted to get the new stats down before he forgot them.

Gobber headed back upstairs and dumped the frustrated Sunset onto her bed. "Stay. There. For the rest of the night." He ordered. "I don't know what's gotten into you but I think you need some alone time to work out your issues."

Sunset scowled as her caretaker left. "I'll show you issues," she muttered under her breath and ran to the window. She threw the curtains open and glanced frantically outside, hoping desperately that Astrid would somehow appear. After five minutes her wish was seemingly granted. The red glow from the setting sun lit up Astrid, who was talking a walk-and the blonde happened to be walking past Gobber's home. "Astrid!" She hissed, waving her arm out the window to get her attention.

Astrid glanced up upon hearing her name. "What's up?" She asked, noting the urgent tone in her friend's voice.

"Hiccup has the Book of Dragons again!" Sunset informed. "And I'm a little uncomfortable with that idea."

"Then I think I better go check on Hiccup's new houseguest." Astrid's eyes narrowed into slits and she immediately hurried for the Haddock household. She paused a few yards away when she spotted the boy adjusting Toothless' rigging. _If he's out here, then I have a pretty good idea of what _she _is probably doing._

Astrid snuck around Hiccup and Toothless and entered the house. She crept upstairs and smirked triumphantly when she caught Heather sneaking around the room. Eventually she found the Book of Dragons and she flipped through the pages. Astrid snarled upon hearing the girl mutter facts about the Deadly Nadder under her breath.

"And just what do you think you're doing?" She asked sharply, entering the room fully.

Heather jumped, tossing the book to the floor in her surprise. "I-"

Hiccup, upon hearing Astrid's shout, hurried into the room. "What's going on?"

"She was sneaking around! To get _that_," Astrid pointed at the book. Hiccup bent down and scooped it up, his brow furrowed in confusion.

Heather looked at Hiccup pleadingly. "I am so sorry, Hiccup. I was cleaning up the room when I found it. I really couldn't resist."

Hiccup smiled at her. "No, it's fine."

Astrid scowled and got into his face, finger jabbing at his chest. "What do you mean, 'it's fine?' She was reading the sacred Book of Dragons!"

Hiccup frowned at her. "Calm down, Astrid."

"_Me _calm down?" Astrid asked incredulously. "_She _is the one sneaking around in your room _and _at night. Sunset and I caught her near my house last night."

Heather looked at the floor. "I couldn't sleep, so I took I walk. I kept having awful nightmares."

"I can only imagine," Hiccup said sympathetically.

"You must be joking." Astrid said flatly.

The boy glared at her, fed up with her insensitivity and aggression. "Alright, you need to stop."

"Oh, I don't think so. In fact, I'm just getting started." Astrid scowled at them both before storming downstairs.

Hiccup sighed heavily. "I'm sorry about her."

"No, I shouldn't have looked at the book." Heather said, trying to keep a smirk from surfacing. "It was wrong of me."

"It's cool, I don't mind if you read it." Hiccup put the book back under his bed and Heather allowed the smirk to show.

Tonight, she would be making friends with a Nadder.

...

"This sucks," Sunset sighed. She and Astrid were in the blonde's bedroom, brooding over recent events. After the scene at Hiccup's house Astrid had went straight to Gobber's. She managed to convince the man that Sunset needed some girl time to loosen up and so they sat on the wooden floor of the Hofferson household, thinking.

"Why doesn't Hiccup believe us?" Astrid asked in frustration, punching her pillow.

"He's a boy. And sadly for us, Heather is pretty." Sunset shrugged. "But the problem is we don't have a good reason to be suspicious of her."

"No normal person sneaks around looking for the Book of Dragons," Astrid pointed out.

"Yeah, but we need the _reason _why she's secretly looking for the Book of Dragons." Sunset explained. "If the reason we have solid evidence to back-up _our _reasons for being suspicious of her."

"And do you suggest we do that?" Astrid demanded.

A sudden roar from the barn caused the girls to rush to the window. They squinted into the darkness and spotted a figure carefully approaching the Deadly Nadder. "Oh no she isn't!" Astrid cried and raced downstairs with Sunset following close behind. They hurried out into the night and came upon the barn just in time to catch Heather feeding Stormfly a piece of chicken. "What do you think you're doing?" Astrid demanded, furious.

Heather turned around in surprise. She quickly smoothed her expression into a smug smile. "You sure like to sneak up to people."

"Only those who deserve it." Astrid growled. She and Sunset walked up to the girl. "Don't bother giving us your innocent act. We can see right through it."

"I noticed," Heather said coolly. She cupped Stormfly's face and stroked her nose. With a satisfied smile at Astrid's snarl, she casually pushed past the girls. "And I think you're dragon likes me. Bye, Stormfly!"

Astrid's anger melted away and was replaced by hurt. Sunset placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Thanks for the loyalty," Astrid muttered to Stormfly before grabbing her axe from the side of the house and hurrying away. Sunset was quick to follow and the two girls soon became nothing but shadows running through the dark night.

"Where are we going?" Sunset panted.

"I need to let off some steam," Astrid said shortly as they approached the forest. "You don't have to come."

"Sure I do. I need to make sure you don't hurt yourself." Sunset joked. Astrid managed a tiny smile before launching her axe at the nearest tree. It imbedded perfectly into the bark but it did not stay there long. Sunset was quiet as she watched the blonde throw the axe at any tree close to her. Astrid's shoulders heaved with pants and sweat rolled down her face.

"I don't know what she's up to," she growled, yanking her axe from a magnificent pine. "But I _will _find out."

A twig snapped, alerting the girls that they were not alone. Astrid and Sunset pressed up against the tree trunk of the pine and peered cautiously into the night. They spotted Heather as she crept past. Sunset smiled softly. "I think we might find out right now," she whispered and they followed, keeping to the trees to avoid being caught.

Eventually Heather emerged onto the beach. She cast a long look at the ocean before settling down on a washed-up log. The two girls watched for a moment before frowning. "Maybe she isn't up to anything," Sunset finally spoke. "Maybe we're just being paranoid."

"Oh really? What does _that _look like to you?" Astrid pointed into the distance, where a boat decorated with spiked shields rapidly approached.

"An Outcast ship," Sunset breathed as the vessel rolled on shore. There was a grunt as a familiar Outcast jumped to the sand, striding purposefully towards the tense Heather.

"**Savage**," Astrid whispered in shock.

Savage approached Heather. "Well?" He demanded.

"I've learned a lot about dragons," Heather said quickly. "But I discovered something better that will make Alvin extremely happy."

Savage crossed his arms and sneered down at the girl. "Go on."

"They have a book of dragons. It has everything Alvin could possibly hope for. It tells everything on how to control dragons."

"And where is this book?"

Heather swallowed nervously. "I don't have it yet. But I promise I will! I just need a little more time!"

Savage towered over the girl, the silver moonlight enhancing his sinister features. "Alvin isn't a patient man. He won't be happy with this."

"I promise you when I get back to Outcast Island with the book everything will be worth it!" Heather said desperately. "You're going to have to trust me."

Sunset gasped in horror. Astrid quickly shoved them both lower on the slope they were crouching behind. Heather jumped, startled by the noise. "I gotta go." She took off down the beach and Savage cast a suspicious glance at the forest before boarding the ship. The two girls waited a few tense moments before peering over the lip of the slope cautiously.

The Outcasts were gone.

"Go, go, go!" Astrid hollered. The two girls sprinted through the forest. Their boots pounded against the dirt paths as they scrambled up to the Haddock household. Not even bothering about waking anyone up Astrid barged into the house with Sunset right behind her.

Despite the noise Hiccup still slept soundly, wrapped up in a blanket on the floor. Toothless jolted awake and stared at the two girls in surprise. He cooed happily upon seeing Sunset. The redhead gave him a quick hug as Astrid gave Hiccup a kick to the side. "Get up!" She ordered.

Hiccup groaned in pain and rolled over to see Astrid looming over him. "Why would you do something like that?"

"Because we are here to warn you that Heather is working for the Outcasts!" Astrid snapped. "We just saw her talking to Savage!"

"You're crazy. She's sleeping upstairs."

"Oh yeah?" Astrid challenged, confident that they had beat the sneak. She dragged Hiccup upstairs and was disgruntled to find Heather sleeping soundly in Hiccup's bed.

The girl stirred and woke up, yawning. She peered blearily at the trio. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Hiccup assured her and eyed his friends with worry. "Nothing at all."

With a frustrated yell Astrid and Sunset stormed outside. Hiccup quickly followed after them, determined to get to the bottom of their strange behaviour. "I think you guys need to relax."

Astrid whirled around, furious. "We _saw _her, Hiccup."

"Well, it was dark out. Perhaps you saw something else." Hiccup suggested, wrapping his arms around himself to guard him from the chilly night breeze.

"Hiccup, we _know _what we saw!" Sunset said desperately. "And don't you think there's something odd about a girl who just washes up on our beach?"

"No." Hiccup said firmly. "Her island is under siege and she escaped. I would have thought you of all people would have had more compassion for her, Sun."

"And I _would_," Sunset cried. "If I _believed _her! Hiccup, you know I don't put suspicion on people for no reason!"

"How could we make up seeing Heather speaking with Savage?" Astrid demanded. "That's not just something you mistakenly see!"

Hiccup frowned at his friends in disappointment. "I don't know what your problem is, but let me tell you this. If I know one thing it's that Heather is _not _working for the Outcasts."

"Then you obviously don't know anything," Astrid whispered, defeated and hurt.

Sunset watched the girl storm off. She turned to Hiccup and frowned deeply. "I would have thought," she said sadly. "After all our years of friendship, you wouldn't let a pretty face cloud your trust in me."

The redhead walked off as Hiccup stared helplessly after her. The words she spoke were like a punch to the gut. "They're just worried," he muttered to himself as he headed back inside. "They think that the Book of Dragons is in danger."

Later on, he wished with all his heart he had believed the girls from the beginning.

...

The morning sun filtered in through Astrid's bedroom window. Sunset got up from the hard floor and yawned, stretching her back. She peered sleepily out the window-only to see Heather taking off on Stormfly. "ASTRID! Astrid, wake up!" Sunset hollered, shaking the girl frantically.

The blonde immediately jumped to her feet, albeit woozily. "What's the matter?" She demanded. "Are the Outcasts here?"

"No, but they will be soon! Heather took Stormfly-and she had the Book of Dragons with her!"

Panicked, Astrid and Sunset raced over to Hiccup's house. There was no way he could dismiss their concerns this time. Astrid shoved the door open, causing Stoick and Hiccup to stare at them in surprise. "Heather's gone!" Astrid cried. "And she took Stormfly!"

Hiccup closed his eyes, regret and anger washing over him. "And the book," he whispered.

"Why would she take the book?" Stoick demanded.

"She's working for the Outcasts," Sunset explained hurriedly.

Horrified by this drastic turn of events, Stoick instantly boomed his orders. "Go after her right now! I'm going to stay here in case she's already made it too far. If the Outcasts attack we'll be on the far side of the island. Move!"

The teens obeyed. Toothless raced after the kids as they charged into the village, hammering on the doors of the other riders. "Let's go, Fishlegs!" Sunset hollered, pounding on the door. "We've got an emergency!"

"Ruff and Tuff, get to the dragon academy right now!" Hiccup called as he gave quick and firm pound on the Thorston door.

"Snotlout, move your butt!" Astrid shrieked. "My dragon's been kidnapped!"

The other teens immediately burst from their houses. They grabbed their dragons and everyone rushed to the dragon academy. "What happened?" Snotlout demanded.

"Heather is working for the Outcasts. She stole the Book of Dragons and is heading for Outcast Island on Stormfly." Sunset said as she helped Hiccup adjust the saddle on Toothless.

Fishlegs was horrified. "If Alvin gets that book we're doomed!"

"He won't get the book," Hiccup said firmly. He let out a heavy sigh. "How did I miss this?"

"You got distracted by a pretty face," Sunset said flatly. Hiccup swallowed thickly, knowing that this was what Sunset and Astrid had tried to warn him about all along.

"I'm sorry," Hiccup whispered. "I should have trusted you. You've never given me a reason not to."

Sunset allowed a soft smile to cross her pale face. "It's not me you should be apologizing to." She pointed out.

Astrid came over at that moment, climbing onto Toothless. Sunset got on behind her and Hiccup finished the adjustments. "Astrid-"

"Whatever." Astrid cut him off. "You can apologize for being an idiot after we get my dragon back."

Hiccup nodded. "Yeah, of course." He mounted Toothless and glanced at his friends. "Whatever happens, we can't let Heather reach Outcast Island!"

"Then let's move!" Snotlout boomed. They all took off into the air, flying quickly through the skies.

After five minutes of seeing nothing but clear blueness, Astrid grew discouraged. "Stormfly is too fast for us to catch up to her!"

Hiccup cast a smile over his shoulder. "With you, yes. But not with a stranger."

"Hey, I see her!" Snotlout hollered, pointing ahead.

Hiccup smiled grimly. "She's gonna be sorry for helping me with Toothless' speed." He adjusted the position of the tailfin and they accelerated towards the Nadder. Heather looked at them as they flew beside her in desperation. Hiccup guided Toothless closer to Stormfly, so close that their wings nearly brushed against each other's.

Frantic, Heather pulled a piece of chicken from her bag and fed it quickly to Stormfly. Hiccup stared in surprise. "Chicken is what you've been-?"

"Now is _so _not the time," Sunset snapped, bringing Hiccup back on track.

The chicken gave Stormfly the energy boast she needed. Toothless did his best to chase after the Nadder, but it became apparent that getting beside Heather again wasn't going to work. "Time to move up, Hiccup." Sunset instructed.

Hiccup nodded and guided Toothless over Stormfly. Astrid waited for the right moment before jumping down and landing in the saddle behind Heather. "Where do you think you're going?"

Heather glowered at her and sent an elbow to Astrid's stomach. The blonde toppled down Stormfly's back before grabbing onto her tail. "Stormfly, tail flip!" Astrid called.

Her dragon obeyed, flicking her tail and sending Astrid flying into the saddle once more. The blonde wasted no time in getting Heather into a neck lock and the two girls began fighting for control. Fishlegs watched the brawl below nervously and glanced up. "Guys!" He cried in panic. "We just crossed Outcast waters!"

"Astrid, could you hurry it up please!" Hiccup called down.

"She's a little stronger than she looks!" Astrid hollered just before Heather rammed her chin into Astrid's face.

Hiccup glanced in worry as flaming boulders flew towards them. "They were expecting us," Sunset muttered. "Hey, Astrid?"

But the blonde was preoccupied. Astrid managed to free herself from Heather's chokehold and grabbed the girl's arm menacingly. "Don't you _ever _mess with my dragon again!" She shouted and gave the girl a shove. The push had more force than intended and Heather pitched off of Stormfly, the book falling with her.

"I got Heather!" Snotlout called and swooped after the girl. Hiccup and Sunset immediately went after the book, which was falling dangerously close to the Outcasts. Snotlout managed to catch the girl, but Hiccup and Sunset weren't having much luck.

"We need that book!" Sunset said desperately, wrapping her arms around Hiccup's waist as they entered a steep descent. Hiccup extended his arm, his fingers inches away from grabbing the book and the book was a few feet away from striking Outcast shores.

"_Look out!"_

Hiccup jolted at Sunset's cry and jerked Toothless to the side, able to miss a flaming boulder. The book, however, was gone. They could hear Savage give a gleeful cry as they reluctantly headed back to the group, knowing that the book was on Outcast Island and that they were no match for a whole island of Outcasts.

They levelled out with the rest of the group, Heather riding behind Snotlout, a sad expression on her face. The Berk teens exchanged solemn looks. "We lost it," Hiccup muttered, feeling burdened and guilty. Sunset squeezed him comfortingly and he felt like he didn't deserve it. "Alvin...has the Book of Dragons."


	11. A Girl Named Heather: Part Two

**I do not own Dragons: Riders of Berk. Direct quotes from the series are bolded.**

**A Girl Named Heather: Part Two**

Hiccup was miserable.

Not only had he lost the Book of Dragons, but he lost it on Outcast Island. If that wasn't bad enough, he knew that all of it could have been avoided if he had just listened to Sunset and Astrid, who tried multiple times to warn him about Heather.

"Feeling sorry for yourself isn't going to get us anywhere."

The boy lifted his head from the pillow to see his best friend peering at him from the stairs. The dark bags under her eyes indicated she had gotten about as much sleep as he had. Toothless wagged his tail and smiled happily as Sunset entered the room. The girl scratched his chin before collapsing on the floor beside Hiccup's bed. She leaned her head back and stared at the ceiling.

"I can't help but feel awful," Hiccup sighed. "This is my fault."

"Not entirely. Astrid and I weren't exactly forceful in our efforts to keep the book away from her, although I did try to hide it." A slight smile crossed her face. "Gobber, however, thought I was being selfish and gave the book to you against my will."

"Not the best time for Gobber to decide to be a parent and teach you about morals." Hiccup muttered.

"We need a plan," Sunset mused. "A really sneaky plan that allows us to go to Outcast Island and get the book."

"Well, we can't just fly up on dragons." Hiccup said. "And we can't sail up on boats either."

"We'll figure out something later." Sunset assured him. "Right now we ought to head to the academy. We need to practice our skills in case Alvin attacks."

"Once he trains those dragons," Hiccup muttered, climbing out of bed and following Sunset downstairs with Toothless trailing behind. "He'll be here."

...

Lucky for the teens, the Outcasts had yet to touch the Book of Dragons. After scouring the island they had finally found it-underneath a territorial yellow Gronkle. Savage stared at the dragon for a moment, unsure of how to proceed. Normally, he would just attack and fight the beast until it was either slain or it gave up and flew off. But there were only three other Outcasts with him and he knew from experience that it took more than just four Outcasts to defeat a dragon of _any _kind.

"So...now what?" Grunge the Outcast asked, peering hesitantly at the book.

"We get it," Savage replied. "We just have to figure out how."

"If we had the Book of Dragons, it would tell us." Grunge sighed wistfully.

Savage rolled his eyes. "Yes, if only we had the Book of Dragons which is currently underneath _that _thing." He jabbed a finger towards the beast, which was eyeing them with suspicious. "That husky, smart rider has this for his dragon. They're supposed to be rather gentle creatures." _Which is probably the only reason it hasn't attacked yet. _"So go on and get it."

Grunge stared. Savage arched an eyebrow. "Well?"

The Outcast sighed heavily and reluctantly moved forward. "Hi, dragon." The Gronkle eyed him warily. "I am just here wondering, if you don't mind..."Grunge carefully knelt down and reached for the book. "...if I can borrow this."

The Gronkle stepped firmly on the book, growling menacingly. Savage winced slightly as Grunge was whipped around by the Gronkle a few times before being thrown against a rock. He stared at the unconscious Outcast before turning to the other two behind him. "Any volunteers?"

No response.

_I didn't think so. I think we're going to be here for a while..._

...

Hiccup and Sunset entered the arena to find Snotlout aiming rocks at Fishlegs and Meatlug. The large boy jerked in his saddle as Meatlug whirled around, successfully catching the recent rock just catapulted at them. "That was a little too close for comfort, Snotlout."

"Oh, stop complaining." Snotlout snorted.

Fishlegs scowled and urged Meatlug to shot a fireball in the boy's general direction. Snotlout dodged it and glared at the burn mark on the floor, inches from where he had just been. "Hey, knock it off!"

"Oh, stop complaining." Fishlegs mocked, causing Snotlout to glower and load another rock into the catapult.

Hiccup quickly intervened before any real damage was caused. "Alright, guys, nice work. But remember, the Outcasts aren't going to be firing one rock at a time."

"Want me to pick up the pace?" Snotlout asked with a mischievous smirk.

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "We have one shot at getting the book back-we can't blow it."

"No need to remind us," Fishlegs muttered. "Stress levels are high enough."

Ruffnut and Tuffnut flew Barf and Belch around the floor of the arena, leaving behind a trail of gas. Belch ignited it and a string of fire rushed towards Snotlout, who was petting Hookfang. Startled the boy jumped out of the way and Hookfang roared angrily as he unwillingly flamed up.

Snotlout groaned and sat up, staring at his dragon in disbelief. Astrid landed Stormfly in the arena, having seen the whole thing. "That was a little too early, Snotlout. _I _wasn't even ready yet."

"It was their fault!" Snotlout snapped, jabbing a finger over his shoulder at the twins.

Ruffnut shrugged. "Our bad."

"How'd Heather's latest escape attempt go?" Sunset asked the blonde, knowing she had left the second Stoick had told them about the girl's escape.

"Went down in flames." Astrid grinned wickedly. "And she even tried to feed me this story about Alvin holding her parents hostage."

"Unbelievable," Hiccup muttered in disgust.

"Never mind her. We have battle to prepare for." Astrid glanced at Hookfang, who was rampaging around the arena. It wasn't an uncommon sight but it still delayed their training. "Snotlout, calm him down." She ordered.

Snotlout scowled and got to his feet. "Yeah, sure." He walked over to Hookfang and grabbed him by the horns. Everyone watched in surprise as Snotlout pinned the dragon's horns to the ground. The Monstrous Nightmare purred in bliss and calmed down. Snotlout grinned at their expressions. "Turns out he really likes having his horns bent to the ground."

Ruffnut grinned wickedly. "Just like Tuffnut!"

Before her brother could question what she meant the girl tacked him off of Belch's head, pinning him to the ground by holding down the horns of his Viking helmet. Tuffnut hummed thoughtfully. "Well, the dirt feels kinda nice."

Snotlout rolled his eyes and climbed on Hookfang. "Are we doing this thing?"

Astrid flew into the air. Snotlout ordered Hookfang to fire and the dragon (for once) obeyed, igniting the floor. Ruffnut and Tuffnut quickly backed away from the flames, watching in awe as Astrid ordered Stormfly to shoot her spikes. The spikes passed through the flames and immediately caught fire, becoming flaming arrows. Tuffnut inspected them as they imbedded into the wall near his head. "Gives off a nice heat," he remarked.

"That's really great, guys." Hiccup complimented.

"All of this training is great," Fishlegs voiced as he climbed off of Meatlug and went to join the others. "But what good will it do? Alvin just isn't going to hand the book over to us."

An idea suddenly struck Astrid and she grinned. "Maybe not to us, but he probably would to Heather."

Fishlegs eyed her oddly. "Have you been getting into the dragon nip again?"

Embarrassed that the 'event' was brought up, Astrid elbowed him in the side. Fishlegs wheezed and clutched his stomach. "Why does it always have to be violence with you?"

"It's communication, not violence." Astrid shot the boy a friendly smile.

Hiccup scratched his head confused. "You want us to let Heather go?"

"Kind of."

"Definitely got into the dragon nip again." Fishlegs muttered. Astrid shot him a smirk and elbowed him once more.

"Actually, I think I've come up with the most ingenious plan ever."

...

Alvin glanced up from his stone 'throne' as he heard someone enter his lair. His cool expression grew into a mystified one as his right-hand man shuffled into his chambers, his helmet glowing. "What is that on your helmet?" He asked curiously, touching it. He quickly snapped his hand back as the substance burned his fingers.

"It's lava," Savage said flatly. "Apparently, Gronkles can fire it. It says so in here." He opened the book and held it out to the leader.

Alvin studied the pages thoughtfully. "Eh, I'll have to see it to believe it." He glanced behind Savage. "Where's that girl?"

"Got captured after making the drop." Savage said dismissively.

Alvin shrugged, uncaring. "How unfortunate. Come along, let's go give this a shot." He tapped the cover of the Book of Dragons and exited his stone lair with Savage following behind.

They had some dragons to train.

...

"You realize the consequences if the plan doesn't work, right?" Fishlegs hissed to Hiccup as they loaded supplies into a small boat. "Not only do we lose all our secrets to training dragons to _Alvin_, but we also lose something really, really important."

"Everything will work out," Hiccup said confidently. He took the baskets that were passed to him by the twins and Snotlout. He glanced around the dark beach and smiled when he spotted someone approaching them. "There she is."

Ruffnut and Tuffnut glanced at the figure approaching them and immediately tackled her to the sand. "Heather, how many times do we have to tell you? You gotta stay in your cell-"

Annoyed, the girl punched them both in the noses, sending the twins tumbling off. She got to her feet and arched an eyebrow at them. "You idiots, it's me."

Tuffnut scanned Astrid's now-black hair and new wardrobe. "Wow."

"Sweet," Snotlout breathed.

"Whoa," Fishlegs gaped.

Tuffnut cleared his throat and crossed his arms, attempting to look unimpressed. "Totally unconvincing."

Astrid snorted and punched him in the shoulder. "Yeah, sure." She rolled her eyes and climbed into the boat.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Sunset asked, peering at the girl with concern.

"Not entirely, but what choice do we have?" Astrid shrugged, willing to do what she had to do for her village and for her friends.

"We'll be following you from the sky." Hiccup assured her.

Astrid shook her head. "I don't need to be followed."

"Well, it'll make me feel better." Hiccup admitted. Astrid smiled, pleased and flattered. Sunset could not help the smirk from crossing her face.

Astrid caught the look and coughed hastily. "Uh, just keep out of sight, okay? We don't need this to end before it even starts."

"Just focus on getting the book and getting out of there." Hiccup instructed. "We'll worry about us."

He stepped back and Fishlegs pushed the boat into the water. Hiccup swallowed thickly. "Be safe," he called. Astrid smiled softly and nodded. She kept her eyes on her friends and they kept their eyes on her.

She wasn't positive she'd ever see them again, and they held heavy hearts, not positive if they'd ever see her again.

...

As the teens bid Astrid goodbye, Bucket entered the prison with a bowl full of soup for their prisoner. "If anyone in there is hungry we got some yummy cabbage soup." He said cheerfully. He immediately grew panicked upon seeing the empty cell. "Aw, no! Stoick is gonna chop off me head!"

He opened the cell door and peered inside frantically. "Ooh, this is not good."

Heather, who had wedged herself between the linings of the ceiling above the door, dropped down and knocked Bucket out. She quickly dragged him into the cell and closed the door firmly. "I'm sorry, Bucket." She said sincerely, as the man really had been nothing but nice. "But I have to get back to Outcast Island and I won't let anything get in my way."

With that said, she turned on her heel and ran into the foggy night.

...

Astrid studied her map and glanced back up, intently peering through the fog. She could make out Outcast Island looming closer and she took a deep breath. She scanned the map again, attempting to memorize the area.

A soft growling from behind caught her attention and Astrid glanced over her shoulder. She yelped in panic and ducked to avoid a close-flying Monstrous Nightmare. She let out a sigh of relief. The boat rolled ashore and Astrid climbed out, shoving it further onto the sand. She gave her map one last look, hoping it would guide her across the unfamiliar territory.

The cocking of a crossbow caught her attention and Astrid quickly shoved the map away. She turned to face Savage, who seemed to come out of nowhere along with a half-dozen Outcasts. He held his weapon lazily in his hands as he studied the girl. "Hmm. I thought you were caught."

"I escaped," Astrid said quickly, launching into her role.

Savage nodded. "I see. It's nice to see you safe and sound." He then turned to the other Outcasts perched on the rocky terrain behind him. "Take the girl out. We don't need her anymore."

Astrid gaped, panicked. This was _so _not how she imagined this plan going. Savage walked away, giving the others a clear shot of the girl. Frantic, Astrid turned to the departing man. "Savage, you do need me and I can prove it!"

Savage paused, but did not turn around. Astrid took a deep breath and continued. "You have the Book of Dragons, right?"

Interested, Savage turned around. Suddenly realizing the book wasn't working for them like they hoped, Astrid used this to her advantage. "I've watched them train. The book is only useful if you know how to use it."

Savage mulled this over before giving the girl a resigned look. Astrid smiled smugly. She had won.

But for how long?

...

Heather crept through the shadows of the village. Her heart pounded as she snuck into Stormfly's barn, where the Nadder was sleeping. Heather bent down and gently brushed Stormfly's head. It startled the dragon awake and instinctively Stormfly shot a volley of spikes. Heather cowered against the wooden pillar supporting the barn. She carefully opened her eyes and was relieved to see that none of spikes pierced anything important.

"It's only me," Heather cooed softly. Recognizing the voice, Stormfly chirped curiously as she watched Heather pick up the saddle and move towards her. "It's your good pal Heather. We're gonna go on a little trip."

The Nadder did not protest as Heather placed the saddle on her, although she sniffed the air expectantly. Heather chuckled softly. "No chicken tonight, girl."

She mounted the dragon and took a deep breath. "Time to rescue my parents," she whispered. "Alright, Stormfly. Let's go see Astrid."

The mention of her rider caused Stormfly to squeal in excitement. She took off into the air, following Astrid's scent. Heather grabbed onto Stormfly's neck before a slow grin curled across her face. "Yeah! Woo-hoo! Let's go, Stormfly!"

...

The other Viking teens were on their way to their meeting point with Astrid. Fishlegs glanced around and swallowed nervously. "I'm having second thoughts on this plan."

"We're open to ideas," Sunset called to the large boy, attempting to get into a comfortable position on the back of Toothless, which was difficult when you had a basket full of supplies hanging on your shoulders. "Hiccup, why didn't you carry this stuff?"

"Because if I did, you'd be squished at the back of Toothless." Hiccup explained. "But if you had told me you wanted to steer-"

"Guys, I'm serious!" Fishlegs protested. "Meatlug won't be comfortable landing in wild dragon nesting grounds."

"Then I guess she's going to hate the flaming boulders and catapults." Hiccup drawled, in no mood to smooth the situation over.

"Very much so," Fishlegs agreed.

Snotlout flew closer to them with a smug smirk. "No problem, Fishlegs. You and Meatlug can hide in a cave while us real dragons take care of the bad guys."

Fishlegs groaned in frustration. "Do you guys know what angry dragons are really capable of?"

"Considering we used to _fight _them, yeah, I can imagine." Sunset remarked.

Ruffnut and Tuffnut grinned down at Fishlegs, eager for the opportunity to taunt him. "You know what's awesome?" She asked teasingly. "Flaming boulders, catapults-"

"-and wild dragons!" Tuffnut finished, laughing at the terrified expression on Fishlegs' face.

"Stop teasing him, guys. The last thing we need is for him to wet his pants." Sunset admonished.

"Oh, we've passed that point." Fishlegs muttered under his breath.

...

Alvin studied the pages of the dragon book, silently wondering if 'Heather' would truly be of any more use to him. "Seems clean-cut to me."

"It's anything but," Astrid protested, taking a step forward.

"It's been my experience that people will say and do anything to prevent themselves from being killed." Alvin drawled. "Right, Savage?"

The man nodded instantly. "Right, sir."

Astrid rolled her eyes at his cowardice. Alvin smirked and advanced towards Astrid, the book clutched in his hand. "And you say I need to properly interpret this and use it on the dragons? I say it's a trick."

Astrid tilted her head up and crossed her arms. "Then go and give it a try." She said confidently.

Not to be put off by a child, Alvin chucked the book at the nearest Outcast. "Well, you heard her." He snapped.

Hesitant, the Outcast cautiously approached the Deadly Nadder that was attempted at being subdued by another Outcast. The man trying to restrain the dragon gave up and raced away. The Nadder, however, stayed put and eyed the approaching Outcast warily.

"Er...what dragon is this?" Grunk the Outcast asked, staring blankly at the pages.

Smug, the girl answered. "That is a Deadly Nadder. You need the chapter number?"

"No, I got it. Grunk muttered. "Uh, it likes to preen, very sure of itself and grooms constantly." He glanced up to find that the Nadder was indeed grooming itself. "Okay, then. I'll appeal to its vanity."

Alvin nodded in approval, believing that this solution fit the new information. Astrid, however, was not impressed. Grunk approached the Nadder and complimented it. "You are a very lovely girl."

The Nadder squawked happily and leaned in for more praise. Unsure if he had gotten the gender right, Grunk added hastily. "Or you are a handsome boy. Really, who can tell?"

Now insulted, the Nadder lifted its tail in preparation for an attack. Astrid gasped and, when Savage and Alvin both showed nothing but apathy towards their fellow Viking's fate, she grabbed the man's shield lying on the ground and rolled in front of him just as the spikes were unleashed. They imbedded into the wooden shield and Astrid slowly stood up.

She smirked at Alvin, who quickly fixed his shocked expression. She tossed the shield carelessly at his feet. "The book only works if you know how to use it, Alvin."

Her smug smile was met with a glare.

...

The Viking teens were fast approaching Outcast Island, which loomed in the distance. Fishlegs looked around worriedly, but no wild dragons appeared in the night. Sunset smiled at him. "See, Fishlegs? You worked yourself up over nothing."

The words had just left her mouth when Toothless jerked in agitation. Up ahead were several wild dragons, snarling at the intruders. Sunset sighed heavily as Fishlegs squeaked in terror. "But then again, what do I know?"

"Remember the plan, guys." Hiccup instructed. "And stick to it, no matter how crazy this gets."

"And it will get crazy." Sunset added, feeling no need to put anyone in denial.

Snotlout pumped his fist in the air. "Sweet! Crazy is cool! Wait, hold up, what was the plan?"

The wild dragons flew at the intruders, preparing to attack head-on. The Viking teens pulled up and flew above. "Unleash the fish!" Hiccup cried.

Sunset yanked on her basket, opening the lid and causing dozens of raw fish to spill out below. The other teens copied her move and the wild dragons swooped below, greedily snatching the fish up and leaving them alone.

"Woo-hoo!" Snotlout cheered and waved one lone fish in the air. "We rock! Dumb dragons."

A Deadly Nadder suddenly swooped in from the darkness and grabbed the fish, bringing Snotlout along for the ride. The dragon shook its head furiously, but Snotlout did not relinquish his grip. The boy peered down at the drop below. "Hoo boy."

"Snotlout, let go of the fish!" Sunset hollered as she and Hiccup flew behind the boy.

"But it's my lunch!" Snotlout protested, smacking the Deadly Nadder's claw but to no avail.

"_Now, _Snotlout!" Hiccup snapped.

The Nadder managed to pry the boy off of its food and dropped the extra load. Snotlout landed neatly behind Sunset and Toothless joined the rest of the dragons.

"Smooth move," Tuffnut drawled as Snotlout jumped back onto Hookfang.

"Shut up," Snotlout muttered. "And _you_," He jabbed his dragon accusingly. "Were no help at all."

...

Morning broke across Outcast Island and Astrid found herself standing outside the door to the Outcast's dragon arena. Alvin glowered at her and gave her a shove towards the ring. Astrid held her ground and extended a hand. "What?" Alvin snapped.

"I need the book," Astrid explained. At his hesitant look she added, "I didn't memorize the thing."

Giving in, Alvin dropped the book into her waiting hand and shoved her harshly into the ring, slamming the door shut behind her. Astrid took a deep breath and carefully walked towards the center. "Oh, please oh please be a Deadly Nadder," she begged softly.

The gate opened and instantly a flaming Monstrous Nightmare burst into the ring, roaring madly. Astrid paled. "Not a Nadder." She flipped madly through the book and Alvin glared down at her.

"I'm waiting," he snapped.

Astrid scowled and slammed the book shut. She was relieved to see that the Nightmare was no longer on fire and that it was studying her suspiciously. "Alright, buddy. It's you and me."

She stepped forward carefully, extending a hand in an attempt to calm the jittery dragon. The Nightmare flamed up once more when it felt that she was getting too close. The backlash caused Astrid to slam into the stone wall. Grunting, she got back to her feet. "Different strategy, then." She muttered. "The direct approach is always good."

Astrid charged at the dragon and grabbed onto its tail. Alvin watched, impressed, as the girl refused to give up her grip. "She's feistier than I remember," he mused and Savage nodded in agreement.

The Nightmare gave its tail a strong whip and Astrid crashed back into the wall. Alvin stared down at her. "That ain't nothing my soldiers haven't tried, darlin'."

"New tactic, then." Astrid groaned and got to her feet. "Where's Snotlout when you need him?"

Her eyes widened suddenly as recalled the new trick Snotlout had showed them all yesterday. Staring firmly at the Monstrous Nightmare advancing towards her, the girl prepared herself. "Alright, Snotlout. Let's see if your little trick works on _all _Nightmares."

She charged fearlessly at the dragon, jumping and latching onto its horns. The dragon shook his head rapidly before ramming into the wall, crushing Astrid. Alvin blinked. "Well, I suppose that's the end of that."

Savage shook his head and pointed. "No, look!"

Astrid grunted heavily as she pushed all her weight into her upper body. She managed to create a wedge between the wall and the dragon's head. Her feet planted firmly on the wall and her hands gripping the horns, Astrid stared at the dragon. After a moment she repelled herself from the wall, slamming the dragon's head to the ground and keeping it there with its horns.

The Monstrous Nightmare cooed happily. Alvin stared, astonished. "She actually did it!"

Exhausted, Astrid collapsed on the dragon's neck. "Alright, pal, how about we get out of here?"

The Nightmare nodded in agreement. Astrid snatched the book from the ground and the dragon rose up, roaring. The Outcasts immediately charged into the ring, attempting to stop them. The Nightmare happily fought back, firing at them and pushing them aside. Just as they were about to leave, Alvin called them.

"And where do you think you're going?" Alvin asked, mildly amused.

"As far away as possible!" She snapped back.

"Without your poor parents?"

Astrid blinked, taken aback as Savage ushered two adults to the rails. "She was telling the truth..."Astrid whispered, and suddenly everything came into clarity. Heather's parents trembled, but they stood bravely beside Alvin as he sneered down at her.

"If I were you, I'd trade that book for your parents."

Astrid swallowed. There was no way she could just leave the couple to be killed by Alvin-apathy is what made the Outcasts different from Berkians. Despite the fact that they were complete strangers, Astrid _cared_. Just as she had cared enough to save the Outcast from the Deadly Nadder.

She wouldn't leave them behind. But she wasn't giving the book up either.

"Fine," she said shortly.

Alvin smirked, satisfied. Astrid climbed off the Monstrous Nightmare and walked into the middle of the ring as Alvin ushered Heather's parents inside. "Give me the book."

"Give me my parents first," Astrid snapped.

Growling, Alvin gave them a shove. The adults cautiously moved forward, confused when they came close enough to tell that the girl holding the book was not their daughter. Worried that their hesitance would make Alvin suspicious, Astrid rushed over and gave them a hug. "It's a long story," she explained hurriedly. "But I'm here to help."

"You ain't going anywhere without giving me the book," Alvin called to the girl.

"I know," Astrid shouted back. She turned to Heather's parents. "Listen, when I tell you to, drop to the ground. It's about to get really hot in here." She then turned and tossed the book into the air. Alvin traced the book with his eyes. Astrid whirled around. "Sorry, pal." She whispered to the dragon. "Get down!" She warned. Heather's parents obeyed and Astrid punched the dragon in the snout and dove away.

The dragon ignited, causing the Outcasts to cover their faces with their shields. As the dragon scurried away Astrid raced for the book on the ground. Alvin was the first to recover from the sudden attack. He glowered at the girl and snagged a bola from his right-hand man. He tossed it at Heather's father, who tripped and fell to the ground with the bola wrapped around his legs.

Hearing Heather's mother scream, Astrid snagged the book and raced over to help. She dropped the book beside Heather's father, but upon seeing the man approach she jumped protectively onto the book. Alvin sneered and lifted her up by her hair. He yanked the book from her grasp and shook his head. "Oh, Heather."

Something sticky spread onto his hand. Confused, he dropped Astrid and studied his hand, which had black hair dye on it. His eyes narrowed into slits. "Or maybe not," he growled.

...

Hiccup and Sunset sat idly beside Toothless, stroking his side. "It's been over an hour," Fishlegs called. "Where is she?"

"She'll be here," Hiccup assured the boy.

"Hey, there she is!" Sunset exclaimed pointing in the distance. She frowned in confusion. "But who's with her?"

Astrid, spotting her friends, gave a three-fingered wave. Hiccup shrugged. "Not sure, but she gave the signal." Hiccup and Sunset climbed onto Toothless and they flew over to their friend. The two strangers gasped in fright upon seeing Toothless.

"It's okay," Sunset assured them. "He's nice."

"Who are they?" Hiccup asked curiously.

"Oh, these are Heather's parents." Astrid said casually. At their disbelieving looks she hissed, "She was telling the truth okay? Stick to the plan."

Baffled, Hiccup and Sunset tensed as Outcasts emerged from the surrounding trees, weapons raised. They closed in, preventing escape. Alvin and Savage approached them, grinning wickedly. "Well, well. I bet you're surprised to see me."

"Not really," Sunset shrugged.

"You live here." Hiccup added.

Toothless snarled, not as calm as his riders. Hiccup patted his head. "Easy, Toothless."

"You know," Alvin began. "With the Book of Dragons, your knowledge of dragons and my knowledge of warfare, we could make quite the team. How does that sound?"

Unimpressed with his attempt to persuade them, Hiccup and Sunset chorused, "Insane, demented, delusional and stupid."

"We're going to have to agree to disagree, then." Alvin shrugged. "You're smart kids. Surely you know I can't let you leave the island."

"We figured as much." Sunset smirked. "But you're forgetting who we are, Alvin."

"We _always _have better plans than this." Hiccup grinned.

"And so do I." Alvin's eyes narrowed.

At the same time, the three gave their battle command. _"__**Now!**_"

Fishlegs, the twins and Snotlout flew out of hiding just as the Outcasts prepared to attack. Snotlout held three men back with a torrent of fire, Fishlegs tackled one to the ground with Meatlug and the twins kicked butt with Barf and Belch.

Fishlegs managed to knock down two more men before a net was thrown over him. "I don't recall this being part of the plan!" He cried in panic.

Another Outcast lassoed the heads of Barf and Belch, causing the twins to topple of their dragon and land in a heap on the ground. They were immediately surrounded by Outcasts with swords and Snotlout, Astrid and Hiccup were cornered together by a swarm of men. "We are never gonna get out of here!" Astrid snapped in frustration.

The net trapping Fishlegs was suddenly removed and the ropes binding the Zippleback were burned. Sunset grinned as Heather and Stormfly came to their rescue. "Perfect timing."

Astrid beamed. "Oh, Stormfly!"

Heather landed Stormfly near the teens and Astrid hurried forward, happily stroking her dragon. "I'm sorry I didn't believe your story about your parents." Astrid apologized.

Heather smiled softly. "Actually, it should be me apologizing to you. And I wouldn't have believed me either."

"That's all behind us." Astrid climbed onto Stormfly and sat in front of Heather. She smiled over her shoulder. "Hi, Heather. I'm Astrid. That's Sunset-"She pointed to the girl below and the redhead beamed and waved. "-and we're very glad to meet your acquaintance. Now let's go rescue your parents."

Heather grinned as they took off into the air, understanding that the impulsive re-introduction was the girl's attempt at a new beginning. Heather spotted her parents being surrounded by angry Outcasts. Before she had time to panic, Astrid ordered Stormfly to save them. The Nadder happily obeyed, scooping them both up in her claws. Heather craned her neck and smiled brightly at her parents. Upon seeing their daughter, the two relaxed and beamed back.

"Alright guys," Hiccup called as soon as he was sure everyone was okay and ready to move. "Just like we practiced. Let's show these guys what we can really do!"

With happy whoops his friends complied. Ruffnut and Tuffnut flew over to the catapults and the girl covered them with gas. Tuffnut eagerly ignited it and the catapults flared up, sending the Outcasts manning them running for cover.

A catapult that escaped the twins was fired and a boulder shot towards Hiccup. He quickly swerved out of the way and Meatlug immediately swooped in and ate it. Fishlegs grinned. "Great job! Now let's take out that catapult."

Meatlug swooped in and shot a lava blast, melting the metal and making the catapult useless. Heather watched in excitement as the teens expertly used their dragons to demolish the Outcasts. Astrid quickly avoided the bows shot at her and called down to Snotlout, "Let's do this!"

"You got it!" Snotlout snapped his fingers and Hookfang most of his body on fire. "Ready when you are!"

Astrid watched carefully as Hookfang flew above the Outcasts. She quickly nudged Stormfly and the Nadder shot her tail spikes, which travelled through the flames and ignited. The Outcasts shouted as flaming arrows rained down on them and abandoned their positions to get to safety.

Hookfang flamed down and Snotlout pumped his fist in the air. "We're cooking, guys!"

Hiccup grinned at the burning forest in satisfaction. Sunset giggled. "I think that's good enough for today."

"I think so, too. Let's head out, guys."

The dragons began their retreat and Alvin watched furiously. "Do something!" He barked at Savage.

Savage could only shrug helplessly. Growling, Alvin lifted Savage up and tossed him in the last working catapult. Savage yelped in surprise as he was launched into the air and towards the dragons. Sunset glanced behind her and caught a glimpse of the man before she was knocked from her perch and sent tumbling to the ground.

"_SUNSET!" _Hiccup hollered, horrified. Toothless screeched in dismay.

Sunset screamed in panic as she hurtled for the ground. She grabbed onto one of the tree branches and panted heavily as she struggled to keep her grip. Savage tumbled from his branch and soon she was following behind, striking the ground seconds later. Sunset moaned and glanced up woozily. "That wasn't fun."

"Ah, what a pretty catch."

Sunset glared at the man and scowled when he easily picked her up and slung her over his shoulder. Alvin took off, racing along the cliff. Hiccup and Toothless were close to follow, the Night Fury shooting plasma blasts at his feet. They chased Alvin to the cliff's edge, where Toothless landed and blocked from continuing, growling furiously.

Alvin held Sunset over the edge, a wicked smile on his face. "I don't think you'd want to lose your partner in crime, eh, Hiccup?"

Hiccup narrowed his eyes into determined slits. No matter what, he would _not _let anything happen to Sunset. "Go for it, bud."

Toothless reared back, prepared to fire. Sunset glanced down and spotted a Monstrous Nightmare flying below. She let out a soft whistle, not quite loud enough to reach Alvin's ears but loud enough to be heard by sensitive dragon ears. The soothing sound was heard by the dragon and it looked up at the girl, curious.

"Hiccup, don't shoot!" Sunset ordered, using the hand that wasn't clutching Alvin's arm to wave the dragon over.

And because she was Sunset Hockerson, the animal whisperer, the dragon immediately felt trust towards the girl and flew closer.

Toothless held back the blast and got back on all fours. Hiccup studied Sunset intently and the girl winked. Alvin, however, took this as surrender and not another infamous save-our-butt-at-the-last-minute plan Hiccup and Sunset were accustomed to executing.

The Monstrous Nightmare swooped upside the cliff and knocked the unsuspecting Alvin over. Sunset spotted the book peeking out of his vest and she snatched it victoriously. "Thanks, buddy." Sunset cooed, stroking the Nightmare.

Hiccup laughed. "You know, sometimes I wonder why we bother training when we have you around." He remarked as Sunset climbed onto the Monstrous Nightmare, intent on taking it away from the horrible Outcast Island.

"Unfortunately, my gift doesn't work on _all _animals and dragons." Sunset smirked at Hiccup as they flew away. She waved the book the air teasingly. "That's why we memorized this thing.

"Good point." Hiccup grinned and the two friends laughed, disappearing in the distance.

Alvin slowly got to his feet, watching as the kids and their dragons flew off. He pointed after them, an amazed expression on his face. "Did you just see that?" He breathed. "That girl bonded with that dragon _in one second_! They memorized the _entire Book of Dragons!_" His voice rose with excitement.

"That dragon protected her," Savage added in awe. "And did you see the Night Fury? He was ready to blow our heads off! We need to get that book back!"

"Oh, no." Alvin whispered, turning to face his right-hand man. His expression was one of evil intent. "We don't need the book-we need the boy and his little partner. After all, why go for a book when you can have the lad who _memorized _the book and the lass who has a 'gift' with dragons?"

...

The teens returned home, safe and sound. Hiccup and Sunset explained to Stoick the true reason behind Heather's deceit and the man was quick to forgive the girl. By dawn there was a boat prepared to take Heather and her parents wherever they desired. Heather stood on the docks, saying goodbye to her new friends.

"I can't thank you guys enough," she whispered. "Astrid, you risked your life to save my parents. I'll always be grateful." She hugged Astrid, catching the blonde off-guard. After a moment, Astrid returned the embrace.

Heather then bent down and gave Toothless a hug. "I'm gonna miss you, too." She glanced up and smiled softly at Hiccup and Sunset. "All of you."

"We'll see each other again." Sunset said optimistically.

"And when we do, if you ever need help again, please ask." Hiccup added. "We don't bite unless you give us a reason to."

Heather grinned sheepishly. "I promise I will."

She jumped into the boat beside her parents just as it was setting sail. They waved at the teens gathered on the dock and they waved back. Snotlout made a writing motion with his hand and mouthed, _**write me**_**. **Heather giggled and shook her head, casting the boy a slight grin of farewell.

Hiccup watched the boat sail into the rising sun. He stood between Astrid and Sunset, smiling sadly. The two girls exchanged glances and smirked. At the same time they whaled Hiccup in the arm, Astrid punching his right and Sunset punching his left. The boy cried out in pain and sunk to the docks, his friends laughing hysterically.

"Okay," Hiccup wheezed. "I deserved that one."

**Grunk and Grunge are names I made up for two of the Outcasts :P **


	12. The Thawfest Games

**I do not own Dragons: Riders of Berk. Direct quotes from the series are bolded.**

**The Thawfest Games**

"Thawfest," Sunset grumbled, crossing her arms moodily. "The most humiliating event of the year."

"Well, for us, anyway." Hiccup sighed. The duo were in the forest with Gobber, who was attempting (with not so good results) to train the teens for the upcoming sport event. The boy went back to the task at hand and tried to uproot a small tree from the soil.

Gobber shook his head in exasperation. "Put your back into it, Hiccup!"

Hiccup turned around, pressing his back against the thin trunk and wrapping his arms around the tree. He pulled with all his strength but the tree was not budging. Sunset watched her friend struggle with sympathy. "Gobber, we're not cut out for this kind of stuff."

"I can see that." Gobber drawled. "But there's no harm in practicing."

Just as the words left his mouth Hiccup lost his grip on the tree and it snapped back into Gobber's face. The man jumped back in surprise and held his throbbing nose. "I take that back. There _is _harm when you two are practicing."

"Can we go now?" Sunset asked, bending down to help Hiccup to his feet.

"At least try to get some sheep lugging practice in."

A sudden bout of laughter caused Hiccup and Sunset to glance towards the source. Snotlout and his father, Spitelout, were practicing a few yards away. "Push yourself a little harder, son!" Spitelout ordered. Snotlout complied and soon he ripped out a medium-sized tree from the ground.

"Oh yeah!" Snotlout cheered. "**Snotlout! Snotlout! Oi! Oi! Oi!**"

"Every year, same annoying cheer." Sunset sighed. "Same humiliating defeat."

Two sheep were suddenly shoved into the teens' arms. "Sheep. Lugging. Now."

Sunset carefully slung Woolworth over her shoulder. "Alright, let's get this over with."

Hiccup hoisted his sheep onto his shoulders and the two jogged through the forest, struggling under the weight. Despite their head start Snotlout easily breezed past them with his own sheep. The boy started to jog backwards and smirked at his breathless friends. "At least try and put some effort into this," he snickered. He kicked up a cloud of dirt, which struck Hiccup in the face and caused the boy to lose his balance. Sunset glared at Snotlout's retreating back before sitting down beside the exhausted Hiccup.

"Why do we put ourselves through this?"

"Because Thawfest is Berk tradition," Hiccup muttered. He glowered at Snotlout, who was clashing helmets affectionately with his father. "And the fact that we lose to _that _guy every year doesn't make it any more fun."

"You know they've given up on us when they put us together," Sunset mused. "Remember last year when we walked into the arena and found that our pictures were beside each other instead of separate?"

"_You're pretty much one person anyway._" Hiccup mimicked his father, recalling the words that were said to the embarrassed teens when they discovered they would be scored as one person. "But it worked out in the end." A slow smile spread across his face. "We'll be able to crush Snotlout in the dragon part of the games."

"Reword." Sunset said firmly.

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "We'll be able to beat Snotlout in the dragon part of the games."

"Much better." Sunset approved. "But until we get to that part we still have to face humiliation tomorrow."

"Right." Hiccup collapsed against the ground. "My body aches just thinking about it."

...

That afternoon found the teens gathered in the arena. Festive banners fluttered in the wind and the teens stood in the center of the ring with their dragons. Gobber stood in front of them with an excited smile of his face. "Dragons are officially a part of Thawfest this year." He declared. "There will be three new events; the fly-and-shoot. This is where you fly straight and shoot straighter. "

Ruffnut cast a smirk at her brother and yanked on Belch's head. A fireball shot towards Gobber and the man barely managed to duck. He glared at the girl. Ruffnut shrugged. "Whoops. Wrong head."

"I thought it felt weird." Tuffnut mused as they switched places. He pulled on Belch's head and another fireball shot towards Gobber. "Oh yeah, that's much better."

Gobber shot one last glare at them before continuing his announcement. "Next event is free-style. This is where you impress judges with a trick of your choice."

"Try beating a handstand on a Deadly Nadder while she's flying," Astrid whispered smugly to Hiccup, who simply rolled his eyes.

"And finally, there are the hurdles."Gobber finished.

"Not a problem," Snotlout said confidently. Hiccup glanced at his cousin as he jumped from Hookfang and sauntered over to him. "My family has never lost Thawfest-and I'm going to keep doing what I do best."

"Being annoying?" Hiccup muttered under his breath.

"Winning." Snotlout declared, not hearing Hiccup's remark. The boy held out one of his many Thawfest metals adorning his neck. "Wanna touch it? At least this way you can imagine what it's like to be a winner."

"Thank you, Snotlout." Sunset said sarcastically. "But we'd hate to give ourselves false hope."

"Good thinking." Snotlout slapped her on the shoulder, completing missing her sarcasm. "Might as well stick with what we know. I know how to bring glory to the Jorgenson clan and _you _know how to embarrass yours." He smirked at Sunset and Hiccup before mounting Hookfang. "Let's ride-"

Hookfang did not bother waiting for his friend to be fully seated. He took off into the air, leaving Snotlout to dangle from harness by one leg. "See you losers tomorrow!" Snotlout hollered as they flew off.

"Not this time," Hiccup glared after his cousin. "Come on, Sun. We got some planning to do."

...

"Hiccup, you've been sketching on that parchment for three hours." Sunset yawned and dangled over the edge of Hiccup's bed. She stared at her friend with half-lidded eyes. "And I still have no idea what any of it means."

"I just have to measure Toothless and I'll explain what we're gonna do for the trick." Hiccup assured her as he grabbed a measuring scroll and set about measuring Toothless' body.

"What, don't I get a say in the trick we do?" Sunset asked.

"Do you have any ideas?" Hiccup asked distractedly as he studied the numbers.

"Er, no." Sunset admitted. A heavy thump caught her attention and she glanced up just as Stoick entered the room. "Hi, sir."

"Sunset," Stoick greeted. "Hiccup. What are you working on?"

"Just a few ideas for Thawfest." Hiccup replied, continuing with his measuring.

"Ah, good." Stoick peered over Hiccup's shoulder curiously. The boy arched an eyebrow in amusement and turned to look at his father.

"Can I help you with something, Dad?"

Stoick immediately straightened up. "No, no. It's just...well, with dragons now in Thawfest..."

Hiccup smiled. "This is the year where I can beat Snotlout and best the Jorgensons?"

"We're all over it." Sunset grinned.

Stoick nodded. "It sounds quite nice when you put it like that." He agreed. He winked at the kids before departing, leaving them to continue working.

Sunset waited until he was gone before turning back to Hiccup. "Explain to me one more time what that stuff you just sketched means. I'll get it this time, I swear."

...

All of Berk turned out the following morning to see the games. The metal encasement was hoisted and cheers rocked the ring. Sunset adjusted the helmet on her head and shot Hiccup a smile. He grinned back. If they were going to humiliate themselves once more at least they would be together.

Stoick stood atop a platform, his arms thrown in the air. "**Let the Thawfestival games begin!**" He boomed. The village cheered excitedly. The tribe leader beamed and opened a wooden chest, unleashing several rainbow coloured Terrible Terrors.

The seven teens immediately lined up on one side of the ring for the first event-sheep lugging. "The contestants are all ready for the sheep lug," Mulch announced into a large horn, which amplified his voice throughout the arena.

"A good sheep-lugging day." Bucket agreed from his place beside him.

"Everyday's a good sheep-lugging day." Mulch pointed out.

Gobber placed a sheep on each of the teens' shoulders. As he slung one over Sunset he clapped her shoulder in encouragement. Snotlout adjusted his sheep, spit into his hands and rubbed it all over his face. Hiccup wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"**On your mark...**" Mulch boomed.

The teens stepped up to the line. "**Get set...**" The teens got down on one knee.

Mulch knocked his hooked hand against Bucket's bucket. The metallic sound signalled the start of the race and the teens took off, Snotlout instantly taking the lead. Toothless, Stormfly and Meatlug rested on the sidelines, watching their human friends. Snotlout crossed the finish line first with Astrid close in second. "Woo!" Snotlout cheered. He threw the sheep against the ground and it bounced against Hookfang's wing.

Sunset would have flipped out on the boy if the sheep hadn't waddled away unharmed.

"Jerk," she muttered as she struggled to keep pace. She cast a glance over her shoulder to see the twins fighting and Fishlegs dropping to his knees in exhaustion. "Well, Hiccup, I think-"

Her foot struck something solid and she toppled to the ground. With a groan she rolled over and stared at Hiccup, who had collapsed under the weight of his sheep. "Never mind," she muttered, pulling her helmet over her emerald eyes.

"And the first point of the Thawfest games goes to Snotlout!" Mulch declared. Bucket stood on a high platform and painted a blue tally beside Snotlout's picture.

The boy sauntered over and smirked down at Sunset and Hiccup. "Down at my feet, right where you belong." He laughed. He extended his hand and a baffled Hiccup moved to accept it. Before he made contact Snotlout snatched his hand away with a mean chuckle. "Ooh, too slow!"

Hiccup glared as he walked away. Sunset pushed herself up and arched her back. "Is it over yet?"

"It's only the beginning," Hiccup muttered and gratefully took the hand Sunset offered to him. "The humiliation will be over as soon as we get to the dragon portion of the games."

"Which is tomorrow." Sunset sighed. "Right now..."

"It's time for the traditional Log-Roll!" Mulch declared. The two skinny teens sighed and reluctantly climbed onto the elevated log where the rest of the teens were waiting. Snotlout smirked at them. "I hope you all like face-plants."

The metallic clang sounded the teens began running, causing the log to spin beneath them. Fishlegs flailed for balance and accidentally knocked Astrid off. He was quick to follow her. Ruffnut toppled off of the log next and Tuffnut flew after her. Hiccup stumbled on the log for as long as he could before inevitably losing his balance, instinctively grabbing onto Sunset for support. Sunset yelped as she was dragged off of the log with Hiccup, both teens tumbling into an ungraceful landing.

Snotlout pumped his arms in victory as another tally was added beside his picture. Spitelout cheered. "That's my son!"

Toothless peered around in concern when he did not spot his humans among those gingerly pulling themselves up from the ground. He then spotted the two buried in the sandbags they had landed in and immediately bolted over. He grabbed Sunset by the edge of her leggings and removed her from the pile. Sunset collapsed against the sandbags, panting for breath as Toothless rescued Hiccup. "Thanks, buddy." She wheezed.

"Thanks, Toothless." Hiccup said dully. Sunset got to her feet and clapped him on the shoulder in sympathy.

"Next up is the axe-throwing event!" Mulch announced as the teens lined up in front of the targets. He signalled for the event to start and Snotlout threw his axe first, getting a perfect hit. "Perfect!" Mulch exclaimed.

Astrid and Fishlegs threw their axe at the same time, causing them to collide in a spray of sparks. Astrid glared at Fishlegs, who shrunk back nervously. "Heads up!" Mulch called upon seeing the twins getting ready to fire.

Ruffnut swung her axe around, nearly hitting her brother in the process. She blindly released the axe and it sailed towards Stoick. He caught it easily and raised an eyebrow at the girl, who smiled sheepishly. Tuffnut's method of throwing was the same as his sister's and his axe flew into the audience. Vikings dove out of the way and the axe imbedded into a wooden post.

Hiccup grunted and chucked his axe. It flew straight and with great accuracy but it fell short of its target. Hiccup groaned in annoyance. Sunset tossed her axe over her shoulder and the weight caused her to fall backwards. "Ouch," she mumbled.

Snotlout cackled and snatched Hiccup's axe from the ground. He strode over to Sunset and plucked her axe from her weak grip. "This is how it's done, Dragon Kids." He gloated and threw both axes over his shoulder. The axes struck the center of the target. On fire, Snotlout grabbed the other axes from the wooden wall they were hanging on and tossed them over his shoulder as well, getting bullseyes.

"**Showoff,**" Hiccup muttered.

Spitelout whooped loudly. "Might as well give us the medal now, Stoick. It'll save those two from humiliating themselves further." A few Vikings chuckled.

Stoick glared at him. "And you might as well take a seat, Spitelout."

Spitelout deflated and sunk into his seat, crossing his arms over his chest. Gobber glanced down into the ring to see Hiccup helping Sunset to her feet. "Ignore him, Stoick."

"I've been having difficulty ignoring him for years." Stoick sighed. "Today isn't any different." He got to his feet, getting everyone's attention. "The first day of Thawfest is over! Tomorrow will be the dragon events! I wish you all the best of luck for tomorrow."

The Vikings began to file out. Hiccup and Sunset wandered over to the scoreboard. "Look at that, we're dead last." Sunset said dryly. "What a surprise."

Hiccup glared at Snotlout's picture, which had three blue marks beside it. Snotlout walked over to them and grinned. "Wow, I have all the points and the best picture. How lucky can a guy get?"

"You won't be so lucky tomorrow." Hiccup said confidently. "Sunset and I are unstoppable on Toothless." He walked over to the Night Fury and stroked his muzzle. "Isn't that right, bud?"

Snotlout snorted and stood in front of Hookfang, who was resting beside Toothless. "Yeah, well, Hookfang and I are like one. A Bragon or a Droy." He mounted Hookfang and flew out of the ring. "Or even Snotfang!" He shouted to the teens below before swooping out of sight.

"Guess what?" Hiccup hollered, even though Snotlout was well out of hearing range. "Tomorrow, you're gonna have to deal with Hicsuntooth!"

"Hicsuntooth?" Astrid asked, arching an eyebrow as she approached her friends. "Seriously?"

"Not my best comeback ever." Hiccup admitted.

"Why are you getting so caught up in this?" Astrid asked.

"For the first time ever, I have a chance at beating Snotlout!" Hiccup exclaimed.

"And to quiet him down," Sunset added.

Just as the words left her mouth Snotlout swooped back into the arena. "**Snotlout! Snotlout! Oi! Oi! Oi!**" He cheered, passing over the teens, who had to duck as Hookfang flew a little too close. Astrid glared at the departing Jorgenson.

"You know what? Quiet's good." Astrid decided as she walked to Stormfly. "It would be nice to see someone else win the Thawfest medal." She mounted Stormfly and took off.

Hiccup clapped his hands together. "Snotfang, tomorrow is where you get what's coming to you."

Sunset stared. "Okay, you're kinda creeping me out."

...

"Welcome everyone to day two of the Thawfestival games!" Mulch greeted. "Let's begin with the dragon events!"

"Today is a good sheep-lugging day." Bucket remarked.

Mulch nodded idly, not bothering to correct his friend. "Our first event is the hurdles!"

The teens were mounted on their dragons on the other side of the ring. A line of wooden hurdles stretched across the length of the ring. Sunset sat in the saddle with Hiccup behind her. "We got this," Hiccup grinned.

Snotlout snorted. "Hurdles? I can make it over those things in my sleep."

"Go right ahead," Sunset drawled.

Astrid shook her head. "We have to go under them, Snotlout. Not over them."

"Right. I knew that." Snotlout said quickly. Hookfang cast a glare at Toothless, who returned the gesture.

"Up first is Fishlegs!"

The husky boy gave Meatlug a nudge when the familiar starting signal rang out. Sunset winced when the two got stuck under the first hurdle. "Its okay, Meatlug." Fishlegs said soothingly. "Uh, a little help please?"

Hiccup dismounted Toothless and jogged over to the boy, pushing the log up as far as he could so that Fishlegs and Meatlug could wiggle free. Fishlegs smiled gratefully. "Thanks, Hiccup."

"No problem." Hiccup flashed a quick smile and hurried back to Toothless and Sunset.

Astrid went next. She flew swiftly underneath most hurdles but her head knocked against one and they both stumbled. The twins managed to clear the first hurdle but their clumsy synchronization caused Barf to go over the second hurdle while Belch went under. Their neck caught on the log and the twins pitched from their seats, flying into the audience and landing upside down on the wooden stands.

"Too bad you don't have your book," Snotlout jeered. "You're gonna need it to take notes."

Snotlout flew Hookfang towards the hurdles. While they made it underneath, Snotlout's head banged against every single log. Hiccup smirked. "Time to show him how it's done."

"You got it," Sunset agreed. She gave Toothless a nudge and they shot forwards. She twisted her body and Toothless followed the movement, flipping upside down. They cleared the hurdles smoothly and perfectly. They flipped right-side up once they had made it to the other side.

"That's how it's done." Hiccup grinned and high-fived Sunset.

"And Hiccup and Sunset make a perfect run!" Mulch cheered.

Stoick's eyebrows lift. A pleased expression crossed his face and he glanced at Spitelout, who gave a tiny quirk of his lips in support for his nephew.

Hiccup beamed. "A perfect run! Those are our first Thawfest points ever! Beating Snotlout is awesome!"

Astrid and Fishlegs frowned in concern and glanced at Sunset. The girl eyed her best friend warily, having a feeling that the victory was inflating his head. "I actually feel taller!" Hiccup exclaimed. "Do I look any taller?"

"No, but your head is getting pretty big." Sunset said pointedly.

Hookfang landed beside the teens. Snotlout glared at them. "This is how many wins you have." He snapped, holding up one finger. "And this is how many wins I need to win this thing." He jabbed the single finger at Hiccup and Sunset. "And _this _is how many chances I have to do that." He popped up a second finger.

Hiccup held up his hand and made a small circle with his fingers. "And this is the size of your brain. Wait, hold on." He adjusted his fingers to make the circle even smaller. "_This _is your brain."

Snotlout glowered before flying Hookfang off. Sunset twisted around and gave Hiccup a disapproving glare. Hiccup stared innocently back. "He's the one who started it...when we were five."

"Just calm down a bit." Sunset warned. "Snotlout may deserve what you're dishing out but that doesn't mean you have to stoop down to his level and do it."

Hiccup blinked, slightly offended. "I was just having some fun," he snapped. "Now hurry up. We have a free-style contest to win."

Sunset shook her head and flew Toothless to the other side of the ring, where the other dragons were waiting for their turn.

First to start the event were the twins. They took off into the sky and Tuffnut carefully balanced himself on both of the Zippleback's necks. Ruffnut climbed onto his shoulders and they perched precariously in that formation. "This is what we call the Iron Split!" Tuffnut called.

The heads moved too far apart and Tuffnut was forced into a side-split. The boy shrieked with pain and Ruffnut waved her arms wildly in the air in an attempt to keep balance. The judges shook their heads and gave the twins a total score of two.

Fishlegs was next. He flew Meatlug in a circle, his arms outstretched. "This is the Extreme Butterfly," he declared as they moved faster and faster. Meatlug soon spun out of control and crashed into the ground. Fishlegs sighed upon receiving a total score of four.

Astrid performed much better. She did a series of cartwheels, back-flips and summersaults on Stormfly as she soared through the air. Tuffnut glared at his sister. "Why can't you do that?"

Scowling, Ruffnut shoved him to the ground.

Much more impressed, the judges gave Astrid a total score of seven.

"Alright Sun, let's do this." Hiccup grinned with anticipation.

Sunset gave Toothless a nudge and they shot into the sky. They twisted and spiralled in the air and rocketed for a sea stack. Just as it seemed like they would crash into it Sunset pulled Toothless up. They climbed the sea stack and flipped over the top before zooming over the water.

"Yes! Oh yeah, baby!" Hiccup cheered.

The judges gave Sunset and Hiccup a perfect score.

The duo landed back in the arena to thundering cheers. Sunset landed beside the twins. Tuffnut gestured at Snotlout, who was preparing for his trick. "I heard he's gonna do a trick called the Rings of Deadly Fire. No one's ever done it before."

"It's because it's too dangerous." Ruffnut added.

Tuffnut rolled his eyes. "Actually, it's because he just made it up."

Snotlout cast a smirk at the teens. "I'm probably gonna win this event just for coming up with this!"

He and Hookfang took off into the air, sailing into a wide arc. Hiccup eyed the rings nervously, as if Snotlout was successful there was a good chance there would be a tie.

Snotlout and Hookfang flew back into the arena. "Light them up!" Snotlout ordered and Hookfang lit the wooden rings on fire. Snotlout stood on Hookfang's neck and grinned with anticipation. His intention of gliding through the rings was put to a grinding halt as Hookfang panicked, the fire startling him. The dragon stopped and Snotlout flew from his neck, crashing into the rings and sending them toppling.

Spitelout growled softly, watching in disappointment as his son raced for the water trough to put out his smoking behind.

Snotlout glanced at his score of three zeroes before wincing. He climbed out of the water trough and glanced at his father, who frowned down at him. Swallowing thickly Snotlout made his way to the scoreboard and glared at Hiccup and Sunset's score, which was now two.

Hiccup sauntered up to his cousin with Sunset trailing reluctantly behind. "Looks like you're losing your little game, Snotlout."

The boy scowled at him. "There's no way you actually have a shot at beating me."

"Actually, I do." Hiccup smirked. "Toothless is a Night Fury and Sunset and I are the best riders. There's no way we can lose."

"But that's what you do!" Snotlout snapped, towering over the two teens. "You both lose and I win. That's how it's always been."

"**Not anymore.**" Hiccup whispered and pointed to the scoreboard. Snotlout, too furious to form words, stormed off.

Sunset crossed her arms. "Was that really necessary?"

"I was just rattling his cage a little." Hiccup shrugged and walked off. Sunset shook her head in exasperation and hurried after him.

"The next event is the Fly-and-Shoot!" Mulch announced. "This is where they shoot down their foes and spare their friends!"

Sunset quickly climbed on Toothless behind Hiccup. The starting signal rang out and the two flew above the wooden village set-up. A target popped up from behind a pile of sandbags. "That's an Outcast, bud!" Hiccup said. Toothless quickly obliterated the cut-out with a plasma blast.

Another target popped up a few feet away and Hiccup restrained Toothless. "She's a friend," Sunset explained to Toothless.

The dragon nodded and swooped in for a landing. He walked through the rest of the course, keeping his eyes alert. A target popped up out of a boat, which went unnoticed by his friends. Toothless quickly blasted the Outcast. Hiccup smiled. "Good one, bud."

"Completely missed that one." Sunset patted Toothless on the side. "Nice eyes."

They flew to the end of the course and the audience cheered. "Hiccup and Sunset come in with a perfect score!" Mulch cheered.

Snotlout gripped Hookfang's horns as he waited for his turn. "If we do a clean run, we'll win this thing!"

The metallic sound rang out and Snotlout immediately jumped into action. They flew over the course and the first target popped up. "Get it!" Snotlout ordered and Hookfang obeyed. "Yes!"

Hookfang accidently flew through a cloud of ash that rose up from his blast. Unable to see anything, the dragon fired at a group of cut-out children, believing them to be Outcasts. The crowd gasped in horror. Snotlout scowled. "Are you insane? Those were kids, you overgrown lizard!"

Irritated, Hookfang began blasting fire at everything. "Knock it off!" Snotlout shouted as his dragon went wild.

"Get that dragon of yours under control!" Spitelout ordered from the sidelines.

Snotlout tried, but when Hookfang was mad there was no reasoning with him. "Thanks a lot, you useless reptile." The boy hissed as Hookfang continued his rampage.

"It isn't looking good for the reigning champion," Mulch remarked.

Fishlegs and Astrid watched Snotlout with concern. The twins, on the other hand, were delighted with the chaos. "**Snotlout! Snotlout! Oi! Oi! Oi!**" They cheered.

Bucket painted a third tally next to Hiccup and Sunset's face. "It seems for the first time in Thawfest history we have a tie!" Mulch announced. "Tomorrow, these young Vikings will go head-to-head in the champion-deciding event!"

He gestured down to the wooden platform below, where Snotlout, Hiccup and Sunset were standing. They waved to the crowd, smiling. "I cannot believe you two are up here with me," Snotlout muttered out of the corner of his mouth as he waved to the crowd.

"Just keep talking, Snotlout." Hiccup chuckled.

His cousin departed from the platform, still waving. Hiccup smirked. "Maybe all the talking will distract you as your family's winning streak goes up in smoke."

Snotlout whirled around and snarled angrily. After a moment of thought he decided that punching the daylights out of Hiccup was not worth it when it would be done in front of the entire village. The boy whirled around and kicked a bucket out of his way. Hiccup snickered. "He's totally crumbling under the pressure."

Sunset shook her head. "You were always a gracious loser, Hiccup. Who'd of thought you'd be a lousy winner."

And she left, leaving Hiccup to stare after her in confusion.

...

Sunset's words bothered the boy for the rest of the day. They bothered him as he hammered angrily at piece of steel. "I'll be a great winner," he snapped as he dipped the hot piece of metal into a bucket of water. "I don't know what she's talking about."

He stormed over to Toothless, carrying the new piece of rigging. "This rod is lighter and thinner." He bent down and attached it. "It'll let us make fly faster and make quicker turns." He straightened up and patted Toothless' saddle. "I even stripped down your saddle-it's light as a feather."

A wicked grin crossed his face as he retrieved the newest version of Toothless' tailfin from his worktable. "But _this. _This tail is as thin as paper and stronger than ever before. Snotlout won't stand a chance and for once, I'll beat him. And Sunset will never call me a lousy winner again."

_Never._

...

Hiccup entered the ring at dawn, making final adjustments to Toothless' saddle. Sunset stumbled in five minutes after him, yawning. "Good thing you're steering today," she mumbled, leaning against the wall. "I'm so tired I might have fallen asleep at the reins."

The boy smiled, relieved that Sunset wasn't speaking to him in that disappointed tone he so hated. "Hey, Sun. I hope you don't fall asleep behind me, because then you'd miss the look on Snotlout's face!"

Sunset debated on lecturing her friend once more but decided that this was one of those times where Hiccup had to learn this lesson himself. "I'll try to stay awake." She yawned once more and glanced up as Spitelout strode into the ring.

He didn't look too happy.

The man walked over to his son, who was stretching beside Hookfang. "**Snotlout!**"

Snotlout quickly turned around with an eager smile. "Hi, Dad! I was stretching, you know. Working out the muscles."

"Have I ever told you the story about the time I nearly lost the Thawfest games?" Spitelout asked lightly.

Snotlout smiled eagerly. "No, you didn't!"

"Well, that's because such a thing never happened!" Spitelout snapped. "No Jorgenson has ever lost the Thawfest games." He poked his son in the chest. "**Don't **_**you **_**be the first.**"

Snotlout's face fell as his father stormed away. Hiccup watched as Snotlout rubbed his neck uncomfortably. Hookfang growled sympathetically. "Save it," Snotlout muttered half-heartedly and urged Hookfang away.

"Hiccup?"

Hiccup glanced up to see his father standing in the entrance. Suddenly fearful that this conversation would be similar to the one Snotlout had with his father, Hiccup asked hesitantly, "Yeah Dad?"

"Do your best, son. There's no pressure." Stoick shot a warm smile at his son and Sunset before departing.

Hiccup smiled. "Come on Sunset, let's get into position. Toothless, bud, you go with Hookfang, okay?"

Toothless growled in understanding and waddled after the Monstrous Nightmare. The villagers were beginning to gather in the stands and the teens joined Snotlout in the middle of the ring. "Hey, can I talk to you?" Hiccup questioned.

"Busy right now," Snotlout snapped as he continued stretching.

"I just wanted to say may the best Viking win." Hiccup offered his hand.

Snotlout snorted and glared at Hiccup. "Trust me, he will. Don't worry about a thing." He turned his back firmly on Hiccup, who shrugged.

"Have it your way." He said softly.

Sunset slapped her forehead at his smug tone. "So close and yet so far," she muttered to herself.

"Alright, you lot!" Gobber boomed. He pointed at the map painted on the wall behind him. "The race will start in the arena, where after the log-dodge and cliff-climb the kids will get to their dragons. From there they will loop around the flagship anchored off the coast, go through the sea stack maze and then head back here! The one to pass the finish line first wins!"

The audience cheered in anticipation.

"Take your positions!" Mulch instructed. "On your mark, get set...go!"

Snotlout, Sunset and Hiccup took off once they heard the starting signal. Snotlout shoved Hiccup off course, causing him to slam into Sunset. "Move it and lose it!" He snapped as he took the lead. He reached the log-dodge and climbed the ramp, avoiding the logs with skill. Snotlout raced for the rock wall and began climbing.

Hiccup and Sunset got back on track and hurried for the ramp. As the logs tumbled towards them, the two teens ducked and side-stepped the timber. By the time they got to the top of the ramp Snotlout was nearing the top of the wall. Vikings from above threw boulders down and one struck Snotlout in the face. Although the pain was great he shook it off and continued climbing.

"Come on," Hiccup panted as he and Sunset started to climb the rock wall. "We can do this!"

Stoick, upon spotting his son starting to climb the wall, stood from his seat to get a better view.

The two teens glanced up to see Snotlout waving cheerfully down at them. He then mounted Hookfang and took off. Sunset grunted and hauled herself up the wall, Hiccup following behind. The Vikings threw rocks down at the teens. One rapped off of Sunset's helmet and bounced towards Hiccup. The boy managed to avoid the rock but lost his grip on the wall.

"He's going down!" Mulch cried, visibly concerned. Stoick and Gobber gasped as Hiccup slid down the wall, struggling to get his grip back.

Sunset kept one hand on the wall and slid down towards her friend. The rough surface scrapped the skin off of the hand that was keeping her from tumbling off the wall completely but she ignored the pain. The redhead reached down and snagged Hiccup with her other hand, digging her boots back into the rock for a secure grip. "Gotcha!"

Hiccup shot her a grateful smile as she hauled him up beside her. Gobber grinned broadly. "That's my girl!"

"Go, son!" Stoick boomed.

The two teens made it to the top of the wall and raced for Toothless. "We got a lot of ground to cover, bud." Hiccup panted as he and Sunset mounted Toothless. He gave the Night Fury a nudge and they took off after Snotlout.

"Look at those two go!" Mulch exclaimed as the teens shot off, rocketing through the air.

Sunset gripped Hiccup's waist as they sped over the sea, rapidly catching up to Snotlout. "Whatever adjustments you made, they sure are working!"

Snotlout circled the ship and flew past the teens. He nearly clipped them with Hookfang's wing as he passed. "See you losers later!" He cackled.

Hiccup smiled confidently. "Time to see what this new tail can really do."

He adjusted the pedal position and the tail spread out, giving them a burst of speed.

"Did you see that?" Mulch cried excitedly, peering at the teens from a spyglass.

Sunset and Hiccup were right behind Snotlout as they weaved through the sea stacks. But they couldn't move past the boy, as Snotlout blocked their way. "Snotlout, move!" Hiccup snapped.

"Don't think so!" Snotlout hollered over his shoulder.

Toothless and Hookfang knocked against each other as they tried to pass. Sunset gritted her teeth against the rough jars and squinted over Hiccup's shoulder. "Rock wall dead ahead!" She cried.

Hookfang gave Toothless one last push, forcing the dragon to turn right to avoid collision and sending them the long way around. They soon broke free of the maze of rocks and caught a clear view of the finish line-and Snotlout speeding towards it. "Let's fly, guys!" Hiccup cried as he adjusted the position. Toothless flew like the speed of light, easily catching up to Snotlout. The boy glanced at the teens in shock as they started to pass him.

"I can't lose," Snotlout muttered in panic. "I can't! I-I..."

Hiccup's smug smile immediately flew from his face. As Snotlout's muttering increased with panic, Hiccup remembered the amount of pressure his uncle had put on his cousin, and how his father had smiled at him and said, _do your best. _

Most importantly, in that one instant, Snotlout reminded Hiccup of how he had felt the many times he had disappointed his father.

"Oh, Odin, what am I doing?" Hiccup whispered to himself. "Oh, Dad, I'm sorry."

Hiccup moved the tailfin out of position, causing him to fall back and Hookfang to pass them.

"What's wrong?" Fishlegs asked with worry. Astrid smiled softly, knowing exactly what was happening.

Toothless spun out of control and crashed into a sparse area of the forest. Gobber and Stoick only took their eyes away when they were sure no harm had befallen their respective charges.

"That was a little too convincing," Sunset groaned, rubbing her back as she got to her feet.

"I'm sorry-"Hiccup began but Sunset cut him off.

"It's all good. You did a great thing and you learned your lesson." Sunset smiled at him. "I'm proud of you, Hiccup."

Hiccup grinned at her before turning around, watching as Snotlout crossed the finish line. "And Snotlout is the winner of the Thawfest games!" Mulch's amplified voice drifted down to the teens.

"Well, let's head back." Hiccup patted Toothless and climbed on. "I'm sure Snotlout is eager to rub this in our faces."

They flew back to the arena, where Snotlout was pumping his fists in victory. Toothless landed beside Hookfang and the teens dismounted. The trio made their way to the platform, where Stoick was waiting. "That was some great flying, Snotlout." Hiccup said.

"Well, you put up a good fight." He extended his hand, and although Hiccup knew what was coming, reached for it anyway. Snotlout snatched it back and grinned. "It just wasn't good enough."

They reached the platform and looked up at Stoick. "I must say, these have been the best Thawfest games ever!" Stoick declared. "These three put on a spectacular show, but there can only be one champion. The winner and reigning champion, Snotlout Jorgenson!"

Spitelout cheered from the audience as Stoick placed the medal around Snotlout's neck. "You did your clan proud." Stoick said to Snotlout, although the warm smile was cast at Hiccup. The boy beamed back.

Snotlout ran victory circles around the ring, singing his chant. Astrid walked over to Hiccup and punched him in the shoulder. Hiccup yelped in pain and glared at her. "What did I do this time?"

"You deliberately lost the race," Astrid said bluntly.

"You're crazy, Astrid." Hiccup snorted. "Snotlout was just the better Viking today."

The blonde glanced at Sunset, who smirked back. Astrid smiled. "Hiccup, no one was a better Viking than you today." She planted a quick kiss on his lips before walking off, leaving Hiccup smiling goofily.

"So, how does second place look now?" Sunset asked teasingly.

Hiccup looked at his cousin and uncle, who were waving and showing off to the crowd of cheering Vikings. He slung an arm around her waist and grinned with amusement. "You know what? I think I'm finally cool with being a loser. I don't think I'm cut out to be a winner."

"You're a winner in many ways Hiccup." Sunset leaned her head against his shoulder. "Just not for this kind of stuff."


End file.
